Sword of Trauma

Sword of Trauma
Theory by Angela Shelton

Trauma – like rape, incest, child sexual abuse, domestic violence or neglect – is like getting pierced with a sword.

Being pierced with the sword of trauma can leave you silent, frozen in fear, stuck, and in pain.

It is nearly impossible to have intimate relationships. Being wounded by the sword of trauma can make you quick to anger, depressed, or isolated. It causes health problems. You can have chronic migraines, body aches, bad memories, insomnia, or numbness. Being wounded makes it hard to breathe deeply.

You can live with the sword pierced through you. You can ignore the fact that you are wounded and deal with the symptoms and instead of the cause. You can get into relationships with other people who are wounded. You can live in entire communities that are in pain. Keeping the sword in place is living in denial. Denial is a powerful choice that you have the freedom to make.

When you see the sword and realize you are wounded, you can also see how you are affecting yourself and the world around you. You can see that you can live a much healthier life when you remove the sword that wounded you.

Step 1 - Acknowledging the Sword
Step 2 - Removing the Sword
Step 3 – Healing the Wound
Step 4 – Using Your Sword
Step 5 – Practice Sword Play