We have all experienced trauma as children.
Some much more than others.
Often we do not eve realize it.
For even small things can be traumatic to a child.
It doesn’t have to be a form of abuse.
But it can be.
It doesn’t have to come from a family member.
But it can.
It can be physical or emotional in nature.
And the scars run just as deep regardless of what type of abuse it was.
Yet one aspect of trauma we usually are not aware of is how it affects how we see ourselves.
The change in our perceived relationship with the world around.
That feeling that we are no longer safe.
The loss of innocence.
It can be a subtle change from one of a joyful, playful child, to one of a scared victim.
And that change can have a profound impact on the rest of our lives.
We see ourselves as victims to the world around us.
We feel unsafe and are always on guard.
It can cause us to show up in a whole different way.
And we may never even see the difference in ourselves.
Until someone reflects it back to us.
Unless we make the commitment to do the deep work to uncover our wounding.
When we do, we may touch upon that scar.
We feel the sting of the memories we have brought into our awareness.
Now the healing can begin.
We can face our fears and our trauma, for now we can see them where once they were hidden in the shadows.
And we learn to have compassion for ourselves.
We see the world just a little differently than we did before.
Our heart aches, and we embrace our pain, our anger, and our sadness.
On the other of all of that is a lightness of being.
As we travel on the path to healing we may stumble sometimes, yet we keep going.
Always moving towards a place of wholeness.
We never fully reach it, yet we are always moving closer to it.
It loses its grip on us.
And we now start to show up differently in the world.
We unlearn our patterns of victimhood and acknowledge that we are creators.
That we can stand in our power without harming others.
And life begins to look very differently that before.
The journey may take time and effort, and it will always be worth it.
Even if in the moment it may not feel that way.
Yet every day we move closer to wholeness, freedom and joy.
Can you see where you have trauma to heal in your own life?
~ Sam Liebowitz, The Conscious Consultant