One of the most important aspects of overcoming tragedy, trauma, or personal betrayal is to understand the distinction between a wound and a scar. Wounds are created at the moment of impact, so to speak. When the event takes place a heart is wounded and broken into countless pieces. For the moment you may be incapacitated depending on the severity of the impact, everything stops and a personal triage takes place. The mind may begin to protect itself by putting the body into shock, emotions may try and take over the role of the prefrontal cortex in the brain where decisions are made and instead of rational thought feelings of denial, anger or outrage begin to dominate. In the early stages of a physical trauma “wound care” is the primary focus and expectations on the human body are limited to the visible results of the injury. This, however, seems to be abandoned when the injury is in the realm of the unseen, the emotions or mind, when a heart is broken but a person looks “normal” on the outside. This is where understanding our own healing and that of those we encounter in life could be handled better. A wound of emotion or mind needs to receive the same understanding as that of the body in the early stages of grief and acceptance. To expect someone to function fully in a predetermined time of our choosing is both insensitive and unfair. Grief and trauma recovery may share some elements in all types of people, denial, anger, despair, etc. but when the stages of grief occur and transition, how long they last cannot be determined by charts and graphs. People are different even though they experience the common features of trauma and tragedy recovery. It is equally important to recognize that progress is essential to Dancing with the Scars and if one stage of the grief process seems to have “taken over” one’s mind or emotions then steps need to be taken to start to moving toward other phases of grief. (Again, there is no concrete timeline for this)
Understanding the physical difference in wounds and scars reminds us that as time passes a wound no longer demands the same level of attention it once required and a scar begins to form. The scar, in the initial stages of development, is going to be very tender and when bumped or touched is going to create pain. So too is it true of the mental and emotional scars we encounter in life, a scar may not require the treatment and attention of a wound in its initial stages but serves as a reminder of a past injury and may still remain sensitive when bumped or touched. Often times when we feel like we’re progressing someone or something bumps up against the newly formed scar and it hurts. Much like smashing a finger or hurting a toe, it seems as though everything you do bumps the hurting area no matter what you try to do to protect it. Sometimes this happens with words, someone innocently says something that bumps your tender scar, and another person may tell a story that is so closely related to your own it brings up a flood of recent pains and emotions that you were gaining the upper hand on and feeling like you can move forward. If we examine the physical wound-scar relationship closely we can recognize how true it is for the unseen hurts and pains of life as well. Life’s wounds will eventually scar over. There will always be a reminder of the event, in the form of memories and heartache, and like a scar on your body, it may fade over time but will never completely disappear.
If you, or someone you know, has experienced tragedy, trauma, abandonment, or betrayal, you, or they, are likely in uncharted waters of life unsure of what to expect or do. I cannot count the times over the years when someone who has experienced something traumatic apologized for not knowing what to do. The first thing to understand is that there is no “right way” to grieve nor a timetable that can be referred to that determines what happens when. The second thing to recognize is whether you are dealing with a wound or a scar, the two have completely different approaches.
Excerpt from “Dancing With the Scars” now available on Amazon.
