Helping people turn trauma into purpose through learning to be present

How to turn trauma into purpose

What is it like to live with trauma?

Trauma can be described in one word, overwhelming. You wake up in the morning, it is there. You go to sleep at night, it is there. Trauma sits on you, weighing you down, making everything more difficult to do. Sharing your experience(s) can be hard as finding the right words can be difficult.

And even if you find the right words, others may not understand what you’re saying. Or you may not want to share at all, being afraid of putting yourself in a vulnerable position, leading you to feeling isolated from others. No one knows that you have this secret you cannot share. This isolation can be stressful. You find yourself having a short fuse. Relationships are not as rewarding as they could be. You blame yourself for the trauma, the isolation, the inability to communicate, or maybe all three. You find yourself in a downward spiral of negative emotion that involves negative self-talk.

You find yourself powerless in the face of this overwhelming problem and no one seems to be able to help. A lack of hope sets in as you struggle to get work done and complete basic tasks. You catch yourself wondering if things would be better if you never existed. You have suicidal thoughts or have even taken some steps towards suicide.

What do you do if you can’t escape your trauma? Is there a way to make it work for you? If you’re interested in turning that lump of coal into a diamond, then The Present Method is for you. The Present Method helps you accomplish this by…

Doing a deep dive into what you want out of your life.
Acquiring a better understanding of how your trauma continues to impact your life.
Discovering ways your trauma can contribute to your life and others.

How can The Present Method help me turn trauma into purpose?

Once you’ve found your motivation and direction, your journey of self-care can begin. This journey starts with taking care of any anxiety and/or depression you’ve had due to carrying this weight around. Anxiety and Depression are so important to handle effectively when it comes to turning trauma into purpose that I’ve dedicated two pages on this website designed to help you manage those symptoms effectively.

Once our symptoms are under control we can then start to live intentionally. Accomplishing goals that align with the purpose(s) we’ve identified will help us with our long-term goals of health and wellness. Below are the building blocks to maximize our wellbeing. Please take a moment to review those and start benefiting today!

Trauma can be crippling and debilitating. Its effects can last for years and even be lifelong. But we have an opportunity here. A chance for change, for growth. To turn our darkest moments into something that strengthens and fortifies us. We just must be open to the possibility. You can turn that lump of coal into a diamond. The Present Method can help you do just that. Please contact us today!

Why regulate my mood?

It’s helpful to think of regulating ourselves much in the same way we think of building a house. The first thing we need to do is regulate our mood. This is the foundation of the home. Without a good foundation, the home will collapse. Likewise, with out a stable mood our attempts at improving in other areas of our life will falter. The four horsemen of mood stability include diet, sleep, water and exercise. Once our mood has been regulated we can then move on to meditation or framing the home.

Meditation helps us pay attention to the present moment, be calm, patient and open. This is the mindset or correct “frame” we need to have if we’re going to face the world effectively. When we meditate, we are building the frame of our home. We have now effectively regulated our body and mindset. We have the foundation and the frame.

Why Meditation?

It’s helpful to think of regulating ourselves much in the same way we think of building a house. The first thing we need to do is regulate our mood. This is the foundation of the home. Without a good foundation, the home will collapse. Likewise, without a stable mood our attempts at improving in other areas of our life will falter. The four horsemen of mood stability include diet, sleep, water and exercise. Once our mood has been regulated we can then move on to meditation or framing the home.

Finishing the home.

1

Accept whatever negative emotion you may be experiencing. When we push away negative emotion, it always comes back. Often times worse than before. Accepting our emotions is a large part of self-acceptance. There’s an old phrase, “what we resist, persists”.

The Habits

2

Now that we’ve accepted what we’re experiencing; we need to begin a meditative practice. Meditation is crucial as it helps us reduce the impact of the negative emotion we are experiencing. This happens because emotion is just as much physical as it is psychological. Calming our body is the first, middle and last thing we should do. This not only helps us feel better but it restores our sense of control and power in an otherwise difficult situation.

3

Making sure we have a solid sleep schedule. Getting 6-8 hours per night. Waking up and going to sleep at the same time every day will help us.

4

We need to make sure our diet is high in fiber and protein and relatively low in fat and sugar. This helps us be stable throughout the day and will lessen symptoms of anxiety.