Embracing a Journey of Growth as a Trauma Survivor
The importance of soul care and emotional growth
“We do not think ourselves into new ways of living, we live ourselves into new ways of thinking.” Richard Rohr, Falling Upward
My birthday was on Monday. I started reflecting on age. On my 50th birthday, I had the epiphany that my soul is ageless. Teilhard de Chardin famously said, “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” In other words, our souls make us unique, and our souls are timeless. They don’t cease when we die.
Good for the soul
I remember a professor assigning a book about soul care. I forget the title and author. I was a bit perplexed as to why he would assign a book on that topic. I was there to study the Bible and theology at a graduate school level. As I began reading the book, I thought it was interesting. I could see the relevance. Head knowledge about God is great, but if my soul isn’t touched by my Creator, all the book learning in the world won’t transform me.
I wish I could say that the book prompted me to practice good soul care, but it didn’t. Trauma’s impact prevented it from happening. That changed during lockdown of 2020. Frequent heart palpitations caused me to find ways to rewire my brain. The practices I discovered also happen to be good for the soul. Tapping helps me see myself as enough, and that is how God sees me. Meditation calms my body and helps me understand my mind. Deep breathing relaxes both my mind and body. Contemplative prayer connects me with God in a deeper way than I have ever known.
Emotional growth is soul care
“Sin happens whenever we refuse to keep growing.” Richard Rohr, Falling Upward
In therapy today, my therapist connected my worrying over future events with emotional eating. I hadn’t noticed it before. Now that I know, I can watch out for worrying thoughts. I have learned from meditation to not get caught up in my thoughts. Every time I shove food mindlessly in my mouth when I feel strong emotions, I am hindering my growth. So, I will use the tools therapy has given me to eat more mindfully.
For our souls to flourish, we must continue growing. Western society defines success by career and money. True success is not something that tangible. It is how we treat ourselves and others. It is learning to not be judgmental, which starts with ourselves. It means recovering from whatever traumas we endured as children. And it means taking the message of recovery to anyone we encounter who needs to hear it.
Resources
Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life by Richard Rohr
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