The Truth About Healing
And how to get started.
by Stephanie Hilborn
I was warned. “Don’t talk about healing.” People don’t like that word. Reasonable people told me that. “Use another word.” I also remember being told in post-war Bosnia by the head of the US Agency for International Development that the people of Bosnia didn’t have mental health problems after a genocide happened there. Obviously that is not a direct quote. And obviously they wouldn’t be thrilled that I am recounting this. I only bring it up because of the obvious elephant in the room that no one is supposed to have problems. Even when mass catastrophe hits, there seems to be a knee jerk reaction of “other people have that problem.”
Why do we keep falling back into the death march of “I’m ok. There’s nothing wrong with me”? Why is it so painful for us to see our shadows with dignity?
What it gets down to is…
There’s nothing particularly likeable about healing. That is precisely the point. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling unicorn sparkles. (If you are attracted to that — it might be a sign of where you are in your healing — I’d be happy to chat more about this — you can learn more here.)
You might ask…if it isn’t particularly pretty then why would you seek this? Do you have to be a masochist to…
