Trauma healing takes acknowledging and accepting your strengths rather than focusing on the negative aspects of self. It takes determination to shift toxic thought patterns to positive. No one is perfect, but everyone has their own set of strengths. What are yours and how do you begin to acknowledge them?
A strength-based approach to trauma healing is one in which you concentrate on using what you can to rebuild – those inherent traits deep inside that led you to this point and which motivate you to continue. Positive affirmations are great for inducing positivity and a healthy well-being. You can also visually set goals for yourself by writing down the most important things you hope to accomplish and placing these in a visible area so they can serve as a constant reminder of the journey you’re on.
At periodic points along the way, pause and assess how far you’ve come and what your level of motivation to continue is. Write this down in a journal, shifting your perspective and beginning to rebuild self-efficacy through expressive writing. One of the best ways to utilize this is to document each day those things you are grateful for. Expressing gratitude will allow you to truly connect with the blessings in your life and the positive changes you’ve made.
Families sometimes choose to express the “one thing positive that happened that day” at dinnertime, round-robining to each person sitting at the table. What is one thing positive that happened, which you are grateful for? Regardless of how bad of a day you may have had, there is at least one thing positive that happened. These are the things you want to focus on for now on. The positive things that happened are your strengths.
By focusing only on your strengths and assessing your ability to use this in your healing journey, you are empowering yourself to facilitate change. You are behind the wheel, guiding yourself in the direction you hope to head. And, only you can take the necessary steps to get there.
Here is a brief, strength-based expressive writing exercise you may find to be helpful…
What I like about myself the most is…
Others tell me I’m good at…
One physical trait I am most proud of is…
I am motivated to continue this healing journey, because…
What are five positive affirmations I want to recite on a daily basis?
You can also practice free writing, contemplating how you’re feeling at any particular point and what you believe your strengths are in the present state. Allowing yourself to write without a filter is a great way to get genuine thoughts onto paper, so you can then review these and determine how to move forward. Taking a moment to write a page or two each day will help you stay motivated and on track.