Trauma healing on the road

While traveling, have you been robbed, hurt, or suffered a loss? Did the experience make you want to return home defeated or were you able to push through it and keep moving forward?

In western civilization, we are often taught that the best way to recover from traumatic experiences is to hire a doctor and take medication. We sulk inside, in a room, away from natural light and air, we allow fear and depression to creep in, and we immobilize our senses. When we move away from our basic primal instincts, trauma becomes locked up inside, and we are unable to work through it. But if we experience trauma or something that triggers past trauma while on the road, how do we make sure that it doesn’t hinder us from continuing our journey?

I studied trauma release before relocating to Cozumel, Mexico, with my 2 small children, and hoped with desperation that I could slow down and heal there. As I began to study how animals worked through traumatic events, such as being chased by a predator or being wounded, I discovered that if their healing process is interrupted, they can remain stuck in the emotional distress of that event for the duration of their lives, just as a lot of humans do.

To illustrate, as a colorful bird flew through the sky, it flew too low, striking a window. The bird was stunned, but when left un-touched, he felt the warmth of the sun, breathed the air as it gently wisped over his body, and moved through his own trauma. He was temporarily immobilized, but once his senses kicked in, and he shook off the hit, the bird began to be reoriented with his environment. He felt his pain, moved through it, took a few moments, and flew off.

Another bird hit a window while flying a little too low, and he was picked up by a person. As the well-meaning person held the bird, he petted him, held his wings down, and tried to keep the bird still as he re-gained consciousness. Being restrained even after he woke up, the bird was unable to move through his traumatic experience. The bird was never allowed to use its senses and instincts to work through his trauma, so he never did.

In my studies, I discovered that the best thing a person can do when healing from trauma- whether the instance was one time or recurring, an injury, a loss, or a robbery- is to be outside, feeling natural light and air, soaking in nature’s colors and sounds. We need the freedom to stare at a vast ocean or an open sky, to listen to our surroundings, to bury our hands and feet in the earth, to note the sensations we feels, and to re-awaken our senses, while the mind, body, and soul reunite in harmony. Being alone indoors, medicated, or restricted in any way from using our natural senses can hinder us from moving forward. Shrinking back in fear or defeat may also discourage us from traveling further, and no vagabond wants that!

Traveling to an unfamiliar country can re-awaken deeper emotions and senses that we didn’t realize were inactive. We are exposed to sights, sounds, and feelings that can be triggers for negative instances that occurred during our childhoods or even during our travels. But if we allow ourselves to feel and respond to our senses, living and breathing in nature’s healing forces, then each experience can awaken us, heal us, and prepare us for new phases in our journey.