I am nearing the other side of 50 still recovering from trauma and it never was an easy road. All the healing work I have done has made a huge difference in my life. The wisdom I have gained, through meeting people when I needed them the most, and the acceptance of the past through educating myself about Canada's her-story: has been key. It also helped to have laughter in my life which has been there from the beginning as a saving grace.
Education, either formal or through reading, listening and learning is also the key. Gaining knowledge does not only mean going to college. Education can mean learning from an elder, reading a book, listening to someone tell their story, going to ceremony; there are many other ways to educate yourself mentally, emotionally,and spiritually. Trauma never goes away but it does get easier to live with once you understand that anxiety is something humans have to protect ourselves. So anxiety is natural and if we can understand our anxiety has been a protector of us. Sometimes a little too strong of a protector but a protector nonetheless. If our wonderful bodies did not have anxiety, we would not be able to fear danger. Anxiety, can sometimes be a royal pain because it can arrive even when there is no perceived danger. I am able to talk myself down from an anxiety attack which was never the case in the past.
I learned to accept my anxiety and once I learned that it protected me, I was able to 'talk to my' anxiety and be grateful for it. I did not like the extreme anxiety, but learning about it, has helped me to name it and not just hide from others for fear they might think I'm crazy. Here is an amazing website on anxiety which has modules that you can read and work through at your own pace. https://www.anxietycanada.com/
