Revisiting A Shipwreck?

And this one is not the Titanic!

What happened to the five passengers on the Titan submersible was tragic. But I wondered about the spirit of adventure that made them undertake a trip to visit a shipwreck!

Given my phobia of closed spaces, I wouldn’t volunteer a minute in that submersible. But there are spaces, I do dig deep into - my memories and my pain. While some people advise that we leave ‘bad memories’ behind and move on, I don’t think life works that way.

Photo by Lespinas Xavier on Unsplash

I’m currently reading What Happened To You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing by Dr Bruce D. Perry and Oprah Winfrey, and I came across mention of another kind of shipwreck. One many of us have experienced.

“Trauma leaves you shipwrecked. You are left to rebuild your inner world. Part of the rebuilding, the healing process, is revisiting the shattered hull of your old worldview; you sift through the wreckage looking for what remains, seeking your broken pieces…”

In this passage, Perry metaphorically describes the process of healing from trauma as rebuilding one's inner world after a shipwreck. This involves revisiting the shattered hull of one's old worldview, sifting through the wreckage, and seeking the broken pieces that remain.

According to Perry, the healing process includes consciously and unconsciously engaging in repetitive behaviors such as writing, drawing, sculpting, or playing. These activities act as reenactments, allowing us to revisit the site of our trauma and gradually move fragments from the wreckage to a new, safer place in our altered landscape.

Perry's metaphor highlights the importance of acknowledging and processing traumatic experiences to facilitate healing. Healing from trauma takes time and multiple visits to the wreckage. By revisiting, we can confront our pain, gain insights, and gradually integrate their shattered pieces into a new narrative of strength and growth.

Over the last few years, I’ve been processing childhood trauma and pain I’ve suffered in adulthood, using writing as a means to heal.

If you want to know more about this, I would love to talk to you about it, dear reader, and guide you towards finding a way to heal through your writing. Do contact me and we can chat about this.

Have a good week ahead!

♥

Corinne

PS: I’m not including a ‘Love List’ today, but I found a possibly useful resource for healing through writing in Kristin Vanderlip’s Pen and Mend Collective (not an affiliate link).

Also read ‘What Happened To You’ - the book I’ve mentioned above.