What it takes to heal from Trauma

The Nobel Prize Laureate, Albert Einstein, once said, “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.” This applies to medicine at large, mental health in particular, and trauma especially.

In trauma, the question is, however traumatic an event may be, why are some people affected while others are not, even after accounting for genetics and environment? The answer lies in something simple: The nature of who we are. But, not simpler: The nature of who we are is counterintuitive to how we’ve been socialized. As such, the challenge for anyone to heal from trauma involves the process of unlearning and relearning what they’ve been led to believe regarding who they truly are.

In Psychology, the answer to the question of “who are we?” makes up what we call our self-concept. Self-concept, in turn, stems from the constellation of all the beliefs we have about ourselves. This means who we think we are is contingent upon the types of beliefs we hold about ourselves. And this also means the quality of our beliefs will determine how healthy our self-concept is, hence, the quality of our answer to the question of who we are.

Since it all seems to center around our beliefs, to heal from trauma then, requires at least some form of familiarity with our own beliefs. Where do our beliefs come from? If we did not believe this, what would we believe then? How aware are we of our own beliefs and the impact thereof? Furthermore, which of our beliefs are limiting, yet we are still making use of; and how do we know whether a belief is limiting or not?

There are many different types of beliefs, but the ones associated with our self-concept, as stated above, are the beliefs about ourselves. One way to know what those beliefs are is to make a list of such beliefs, by looking at the 7 categories in the Life Model and see ourselves and our relationships in each one. While this may be challenging to do, it may be a very helpful exercise, allowing us to list as many beliefs about ourselves. Having a list of beliefs about ourselves is known as “Belief About Oneself Log,” and contains both types of beliefs that would be considered either helpful or unhelpful. This in itself is valuable while also lends itself to a process of necessary interventions to help anyone with trauma.

Those who suffer from trauma do so because of some beliefs they hold on to. Often enough, they are unaware of what these beliefs are. At times, they may be aware of what they are but are unaware of what to do with them. In the above process, once we have a log, we can proceed with an inventory, which means we look at our Belief About Ourselves Log, explore which beliefs serve us, and we, therefore, would like to keep.

This can be so empowering for those with trauma that all clinicians would benefit from mastering it to help patients and clients cease the suffering that comes with trauma.

On Friday, Dec 11, 2020, from 9am-5pm, we will have a full-day CEU on trauma, with 6 CEU credits. You are going to learn transformative ways to make a difference for anyone with trauma. We trust you will join us, and we look forward to welcoming you and great transformative learning.

Until soon,
Karen and Mardoche

About the Authors:

Karen Dubin-McKnight, PhD, LCSW, is a Columbia-trained Social Worker with wide clinical, teaching, and supervision experience. She also has a background in management, mentorship, and leadership that spans almost 20 years. Her added passion is in advocacy, coaching, public relations, and mediation. Her goal is to ensure that social workers and women feel empowered and have a voice “at the table.” She has previously held Executive level positions, and two other directorships in different organizations. She is currently Adjunct Faculty at Columbia University School of Social Work and Adelphi University School of Social Work. She also maintains a private practice, working with individuals who have experienced loss and trauma, and also provides clinical and management supervision.

Mardoche Sidor, MD is a Harvard-trained Quadruple Board Certified Psychiatrist, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University, School of Physicians and Surgeons. He is trained in and taught all the major psychotherapeutic modalities, including and not limiting to CBT, DBT, Family Systems,  and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. He is also the author of 3 books including Journey to Empowerment; Discovering Your Worth; and The Power of Faith. Dr. Sidor has worked both as a primary care physician and as Medical director in three different settings, including as Chief Medical Officer of Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services (CASES). He is the Founder and CEO of the SWEET Institute.