Processing Trauma Without Words

Much of therapy is giving words to our experiences. While the external world of happenings and events are easier to articulate, the inner world of emotions and meanings is often more difficult to describe. This is why therapy comes in a bunch of different modalities. Some people work well with body-based therapies like Somatic Experiencing. Others prefer more symbolic work, as one experiences with play therapy or sandtray work. Like artist Richard Schmid shares, "When we are bursting with some wordless experience, Art is our voice, the song of the heart." And thus, art therapy is a magnificent tool for emotional expression, to externalize the indescribable. Even in trauma therapy, we will sometimes limit how much talking about an experience happens, because combining the already triggering memory with trying to find the right words to capture it all is overwhelming. Much trauma processing happens metaphorically, throughout many differing therapeutic modalities, because we create meanings and connections between different ideas. Since our brain creates those ties, we can work on what is all tied up there to capture the emotions and depth of those traumas to heal those wounds, rather than focusing on trying to figure out the words. When processing trauma is no longer restricted to our language, our capacity for emotional expression and accessing feelings blossoms. That is good, because then we can reach what needs to be mended. When we’ve finally recovered, then we have a newfound skill to help us savor and enjoy the brighter aspects of life as well. Dive into self-expression - it is medicine for a heart that needs to share what it takes in!

"When we are bursting with some wordless experience, Art is our voice, the song of the heart."

~ Richard Schmid