RELAX & UNWIND: March/2010
Finding the Inner Resources to Heal
Remember the saying "a little light pushes away a lot of darkness?" That is an essential concept when dealing with difficult situations, and especially when it comes to recovering from a traumatic experience. We know from everyday life that just a little change in attitude makes us feel a little better, and before we know it, our whole world is transformed.
Sometimes that light comes from a friend or loved one, but many times it's our own inner positive resources that help us heal.
A few months ago I was working through a personal issue that brought me back to a traumatic incident from my childhood. It wasn't a life threatening trauma, but apparently it stuck inside of me all those years. I was probably 4-6 years old and someone close to me got angry at me. It scared me, and ultimately brought on certain self-confidence issues. The effect wasn't life-altering; I still have self-confidence. But it apparently had some impact.
Interestingly enough, the memory came up through inner dialogue. The memory played itself out like a movie: it was as if I was watching the memory on a screen. As I was watching myself as a little boy, I was guided by the therapist to use my own current self as a resource to speak and guide that little boy inside of me through the experience. I was able to understand the experience in a completely different way and transfer that understanding - and more importantly, the feeling - that everything was "ok" to the little boy. In this case, my confidence and understanding as an adult were the resource that another part of myself needed in order to move through a situation that had continued to play itself out in the same way until now. The little boy smiled in the end and felt better and I felt a major release physically around my chest area.
In my experience, we gain the resources we need simply by relaxing and asking for them. This is a very important tool when dealing with trauma and even everyday stresses and challenges. If you experience serious trauma symptoms, please find yourself a proper health care professional that can help you. We all need each other at some point in our lives. And even if you're not experiencing serious trauma symptoms, having someone who knows what they're doing guide you through deeper experiences can be very enlightening and can really change your life.
Good luck and thanks for reading!!
Matt Gleicher, CMT
Jerusalem Massage
matt@jerusalemmassage.com
052-636-2000