jsaldrich
05-12-2008, 04:52 PM
Chapter 1: The Journey Begins
Susan came into my office carrying on her soul the weight of thirty years of memories of childhood abuse. After a brief interview it was obvious that this woman suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
I asked Susan what she wanted from treatment. Her painful response was one I had heard from others in similar situations. “I just want the hurt to stop. I don’t want to keep remembering what happened. Just make it go away.” Feeling her pain was not difficult. Obviously she often relived those childhood events.
“Susan, I don’t have a magic wand or pill to take to make the memories go away. I wish I did. But, what I can promise you is this: if you will give the program a good effort you can come to see those events differently than how you now experience them. You can learn to put them where they belong and deal with them in the here and now. I can’t make you feel better, but I can help you to feel differently about what has happened.”
I recently came across government study that found 1 in 50 infants falling victim to child Abuse or neglect during their first year of life. As appalling as this statistic is it’s also conservative. I would suggest that all children, and what I mean by children are those 14 years old or under, should be included. Why? Because of what this study did not take into account. It did not include those children, who after 1 years of age, fall prey to sexual, emotional, or physical abuse. Then there are those who experience some form of emotional loss such as the death of a parent, sibling, or another person close to them. Add to this count the child whose life experiences include family alcohol or substance abuse issues and the numbers come closer to 1 in 20. It is from among these children that adults with unresolved hurts emerge.
There’s another group of people as well. Those people who suffer trauma in adulthood. A rape, spousal abuse, death, illness, an accident are among the kinds of events that can radically alter an adults perspective of life. These types of events leave the child or adult with overwhelming feelings of loss, fear and anger. They distance themselves from other people and from celebrating life. When a child grows into an adult with this kind of unresolved emotional baggage their spiritual and behavioral world is affected. Whether in childhood or adulthood when these events occur they become roadblocks in the spiritual journey
As an adult trying to deal with childhood hurt, or for that matter an adult who has experienced some form of physical or mental hurt, the road to recovery can seem endless. Throughout the pages of this book you will experience new ways of coming to terms with your hurt. The very hurt that keeps you locked into those destructive behaviors and from fulfilling your desire to walk in the Spirit
Where this Journey Will Take You
One of the exciting things about the approach used in this book is that it works. I have had scores of people go through treatment using this model. Among them were people suffering from PTSD, depression, anxiety, bi-polar disorder to name just a few. Each one was challenged to first accept who they are then begin a process of changing how they see themselves, and finally to commit themselves to acting in a value driven manner.
The results of this approach are people better equipped to deal with all that life offers, to see themselves as being in charge of their own mind. Able to monitor, regulate, and modulate their thoughts rather than just reacting to them.
Let’s get this one thing out of the way from the start: bad things happen to people. The price of admission into the human race is knowing that each of us will encounter bad as well as good in our journey. Your preferred outcome for your life is not dependent on what happens, but on how you respond to what happens. Suffering is a part of our lives.
My goal in writing this book is to provide you with a set of tools which will lead you toward feeling better or differently about your life’s path. Along the way you will begin to see yourself as well as the circumstances you are in differently. You will truly be able to walk in the spirit as God directs your life. During your journey you’ll identify and learn how to let go of those things which block you from acting on acceptance and open your life to the commitment you are called to follow.
Susan came into my office carrying on her soul the weight of thirty years of memories of childhood abuse. After a brief interview it was obvious that this woman suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
I asked Susan what she wanted from treatment. Her painful response was one I had heard from others in similar situations. “I just want the hurt to stop. I don’t want to keep remembering what happened. Just make it go away.” Feeling her pain was not difficult. Obviously she often relived those childhood events.
“Susan, I don’t have a magic wand or pill to take to make the memories go away. I wish I did. But, what I can promise you is this: if you will give the program a good effort you can come to see those events differently than how you now experience them. You can learn to put them where they belong and deal with them in the here and now. I can’t make you feel better, but I can help you to feel differently about what has happened.”
I recently came across government study that found 1 in 50 infants falling victim to child Abuse or neglect during their first year of life. As appalling as this statistic is it’s also conservative. I would suggest that all children, and what I mean by children are those 14 years old or under, should be included. Why? Because of what this study did not take into account. It did not include those children, who after 1 years of age, fall prey to sexual, emotional, or physical abuse. Then there are those who experience some form of emotional loss such as the death of a parent, sibling, or another person close to them. Add to this count the child whose life experiences include family alcohol or substance abuse issues and the numbers come closer to 1 in 20. It is from among these children that adults with unresolved hurts emerge.
There’s another group of people as well. Those people who suffer trauma in adulthood. A rape, spousal abuse, death, illness, an accident are among the kinds of events that can radically alter an adults perspective of life. These types of events leave the child or adult with overwhelming feelings of loss, fear and anger. They distance themselves from other people and from celebrating life. When a child grows into an adult with this kind of unresolved emotional baggage their spiritual and behavioral world is affected. Whether in childhood or adulthood when these events occur they become roadblocks in the spiritual journey
As an adult trying to deal with childhood hurt, or for that matter an adult who has experienced some form of physical or mental hurt, the road to recovery can seem endless. Throughout the pages of this book you will experience new ways of coming to terms with your hurt. The very hurt that keeps you locked into those destructive behaviors and from fulfilling your desire to walk in the Spirit
Where this Journey Will Take You
One of the exciting things about the approach used in this book is that it works. I have had scores of people go through treatment using this model. Among them were people suffering from PTSD, depression, anxiety, bi-polar disorder to name just a few. Each one was challenged to first accept who they are then begin a process of changing how they see themselves, and finally to commit themselves to acting in a value driven manner.
The results of this approach are people better equipped to deal with all that life offers, to see themselves as being in charge of their own mind. Able to monitor, regulate, and modulate their thoughts rather than just reacting to them.
Let’s get this one thing out of the way from the start: bad things happen to people. The price of admission into the human race is knowing that each of us will encounter bad as well as good in our journey. Your preferred outcome for your life is not dependent on what happens, but on how you respond to what happens. Suffering is a part of our lives.
My goal in writing this book is to provide you with a set of tools which will lead you toward feeling better or differently about your life’s path. Along the way you will begin to see yourself as well as the circumstances you are in differently. You will truly be able to walk in the spirit as God directs your life. During your journey you’ll identify and learn how to let go of those things which block you from acting on acceptance and open your life to the commitment you are called to follow.