Episode 20 - Healing After Trauma: Mind, Body & Soul Recovery with Karen Robinson
By Jessica Garrison
Episode trigger warnings: mentions of suicide, assault, trauma, and abuse
This week we are joined by Karen Robinson of the Heal, Thrive, Dream Podcast that Melissa guested on recently! Karen is an authentic, genuine, and compassionate woman with so much knowledge to share. This episode features topics that may be triggering for some people, so proceed with caution.
Over the years, Karen has been able to further understand the connection between our mind, body, and soul. She tracks her negative thoughts, organizing them into buckets that are either her negative thoughts or her core beliefs. Sometimes these thoughts are hidden within the self conscience and need deeper analytical skills to fully remember or understand. Therapy is a powerful tool, and Karen shares that she uses behavioral therapy to help her organize her thoughts and explore her trauma deeper.
She says that she used to numb her emotions with unhealthy methods, which we have heard many times before from women. It’s not uncommon for people to seek out alcohol, drugs, or even food as a way to cope with their emotions rather than facing the reality of them, but Karen provides information that can change your whole perspective. An emotion can pass through our bodies in as little as 9 seconds, but we work so hard to avoid those 9 seconds, stuffing it further and further down. We try to put those 9 seconds off as long as possible to fill the void with whatever is within reach.
Rather than getting it over with and facing your emotions head on, we really try to avoid feeling at all unless it’s an emotion we deem “good” like happy or excited. But as Karen reminds us, we are one with our body. It’s one system, so everything is connected. That means if one area is impacted, the rest of us will be impacted eventually, even if we don’t see it at first. Even so much as leaving your teeth uncleaned can cause bacteria to grow that can make you feel sick in the rest of your body. I would never think that teeth could affect a person’s overall health, but we truly are connected beings. When we avoid one area of our health, we’re really avoiding our health as a whole.
Karen has worked so hard to get to where she is today as she continues to support others in discovering their true selves and overcoming trauma. The journey begins with you and your step towards creating a healthier life for yourself, but you are never alone in your efforts. Women like Karen are all around you—you just have to open your heart and mind.
Ways to Engage: Try tracking your negative thoughts, separating what are lies you’re telling yourself and what the truth is. Sift through what your core beliefs or values are, keeping them in your mind and getting rid of unnecessary negativity.
Resources:
Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
call or text 988
National Domestic Violence Hotline
call 800-799-7233
text BEGIN to 88788
RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline
call 800-656-4673
text HOPE to 64673
CTRI