There are numerous ways to heal from sexual trauma and today I'd like to talk about how I plan on healing my sexual trauma which are not necessarily conventional ways of doing it. My hope is that some of my sisters and brothers who have also experienced sexual trauma will learn some new ways to heal themselves. I truly believe that healing from sexual trauma needs to incorporate the body. The body was violated and the body must feel safe again. You cannot talk your way into feeling safe again; not fully.
Many spiritual healers may suggest working on the sacral charka (2nd chakra) to work through sexual trauma since this is where sensuality resides, but I believe you first must start with the root chakra (1st chakra). The root chakra is the foundation for your life. It is all about your body, security, grounding into this reality, safety, the right to exist, and belonging. Now think about this, when someone is violated sexually, they will no longer feel safe in their body and may distrust their body. They may even feel betrayed by their body if their body didn't do what the mind thinks it should have done. Some victims may experience pleasure or orgasm during a sexual assault which is completely normal. It's like the body sneezing after sniffing pepper. Maybe the victim didn't fight the person off. It's likely the victim will equate that with self betrayal.
I believe damage to the root chakra can happen no matter the type of sexual assault. Regardless of if someone was physically assaulted, an attempt was made or if someone said something that was sexually violent or harassing, the body will interpret a lack of safety and an inability to protect itself. So, I believe you must start in the body to make long term impact on sexual trauma, and that's exactly what I have been doing.
There are a number of things I am doing, that my fellow sisters and brothers can do as well. I have been putting my bare feet on the earth and standing in the sun light. I take deep breaths and try to just be with myself without too many thoughts (I'm an over thinker so I try to keep it real and just work on LESS thoughts instead of NO thoughts). I've also been walking in nature with no music or distractions and take in my surroundings. This helps to bring you in the present moment and remember that you are safe, right now.
I also have been taking long spiritual baths and just feel my body. This helps to reconnect you into your body because often we are severed off from our body after being sexually violated. Disassociation happens all too often when someone has been violated. It's safer to have your soul leave your body and get stuck in your head and in your imagination. Now we must invite the soul to softly return down into the body. You can also do this by just squeezing your body parts slowly and pay attention to the sensation your body has when it's touched.
I've been using a lot of mantras like "I am safe," "I'm allowed to be here," "I belong," and "I feel," to name a few. There are also great meditations specifically designed to work on your root chakra and breath work is also a great way to reconnect into your body. I've been doing yoni steams and drinking herbal teas as well.
I engaged in sacred rage a lot. Let me explain what this is. You stomp your right foot on the ground while screaming and yelling (mostly noises and less about the words). I needed to turn on rocker music so the neighbors didn't call the cops LOL! This helps to dispel the negative energy down into the earth so Mother Nature can take the anger and rage from you. Yelling in the car or in a secluded area helps, as well as the towel twisting technique created by Peter Levine. You take a hand towel and roll it up. Then you twist the hell out of it while grunting angrily and making an angry face. This also helps to dispel the negative energy in all facets.
I've been reading this amazing book called Eastern Body, Western Mind by Anodea Judith which discusses the chakras and psychology! It nicely blends the two to explain how one affects the other. Each chapter is a detailed description of a chakra, how to know if it is under active or overactive and lots of exercises to make the chakra healthy. A few additional exercises to heal the body are to do automatic writing and have a dialog with your body to know what it needs and reconnect with it. Also, drawing your body and your aura and chakras. These are some exercises I look forward to doing in the future.
I truly believe there are so many ways to heal that go beyond what I've described for myself. I highly recommend Somatic therapy and EMDR for healing from trauma from a mental health professional. There are also countless spiritual healers who can help as well. There is something profound in our healing when we can have a safe person hold space and help the healing move along. But you can also do it alone or in conjunction with a trained professional. There are also groups you can attend with other people who have experienced sexual trauma. It's so impactful to have someone look you in the eyes, say "I'm sorry you had to go through this," and "me too."
Healing is possible. It may take a long time to recover, but with these different techniques I believe you can start to feel the healing early on. Try lots of different things to see what works for you. And, if you made it to the end to this whole blog and would like a session with me to help you heal your sexual trauma through Somatic practices and Shamanic healings, just mention that you read all the way through and I'll give you a 10% discount!