So this was a talk that was requested by somebody for me to talk about.
I can't pretend to know the answer for everyone,
Or how to heal and find meaning after trauma.
But I can talk about my own personal experience and how I find strength in these hard times and how I was able to move forward and find meaning in my life.
Everybody's journey is different,
And there are always lots of nuances and subtleties in the path.
I guess a good place to start would be to talk very briefly about the trauma that I went through.
I was involved in a life-altering accident in 2015 that left me in an extremely broken,
Twisted and fragile body,
Filled with constant enduring pain.
Along with all the physical trauma,
I also suffered an immense amount of emotional trauma and a heartbreaking feeling of loss.
Going through such an immense traumatic change meant there was actually an entire identification breakdown for me.
My whole assumed will that I knew was shattered,
And within these turbulent waters there was an extreme lack of safety.
So I needed to gather a sense of identity again,
As well as find a way that my life could still feel meaningful and fulfilling.
So how might we find purpose or meaning after trauma?
Looking back,
Something that was very important for me was to remain open.
After trauma there can be a kind of closing in,
Like the tunnel or walls around you are closing in.
And because we are so uncomfortable and unhappy with how we are right now,
There can be a tendency to be drawn out to the past or drawn out to the future.
And for me,
Being drawn out to everything other than the present robs me of the opportunity to heal.
And how will we find meaning and purpose if we don't allow ourselves to heal?
If you can remain really present and open,
In whatever situation you're in,
It allows the meaning to come to you,
When you're ready.
The natural immediate instinct is to try to reach out and find meaning,
But if we can remain present with what's happening within us,
Find some sense of safety and ground within it,
It will allow meaning and purpose to come to us,
When we are ready to receive it.
I also feel that crises is an opportunity for spiritual awakening or growth.
When everything in our life is hunky-dory,
We can often just plod on with how we are,
Because there's no immediate need for change.
When a crisis happens,
There is a necessity to find some solid ground to hold on to,
To support us.
So a crisis can lead us to go deeper,
To awaken and find true solace in a spiritual path.
Of course,
After trauma there is so much healing that needs to take place,
So that we can feel whole again.
And this takes time.
The journey will be quite different for each of us,
But if we can somehow feel safe enough to remain present,
Embodied and open,
It allows meaning and purpose to come to us.
So in some sense,
Trusting the process or trusting the universe.
I feel that after trauma there's so much inner and outer conflict going on,
And I can feel like we're grasping for steady ground.
So it's essential that we begin to cultivate a more gentle,
Kind and compassionate inner environment.
Being kind to yourself,
Seeing if you can be present with what's happening to you and remain open,
Trusting in the process are some of the things that have been essential in my own healing journey.
It may not be easy or comfortable,
But it can allow you to begin to heal and allow meaning to come to you when the time is right.
