From storms to streams
Growth after early childhood trauma
The course is currently in the pilot phase
This course is for you when …
- you have many negative and judgmental thoughts about yourself
- an important person abused or neglected you as a child
- you do not really know who you are and what you want
- you find it difficult to trust others when they say something positive
- it feels like God is mostly far away and like a strict Father
- the books and counselors you consulted did not bring the relief you long for
- life is one big long struggle that you wish was over
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- deep down you believe: ‘I am not OK’ or ‘no one is OK’
- you are ashamed of what is going on inside you because it is so negative
- as a child you were bullied a lot or experienced a lot of rejection in other ways
- you are painfully aware of what isn’t working
- you compensate for the negative by constantly trying to achieve things
- you flee into porn or alcohol or gambling or other harmful behavior to alleviate the pain
- the words ‘God loves you’ and ‘God is good’ feel empty
- you have already talked to so many people and still feel stuck
In short: your life has been stormy for a very long time!
If you want things to change and to start flowing, then this course is for you.
A more joy-filled life is truly possible – a life in which you feel loved and are able to love others deeply.
Ultimately, you can learn to integrate your experiences into your life and give them meaning, allowing you to live on enriched.
God has your recovery in mind
At a glance
Early childhood trauma is one of the most severe types, because you did not receive a strong foundation from your caregivers when you were most dependent on them. Whatever you did not receive and learn back then, you still have to go through. Thankfully, that is possible.
The course focuses on processing early childhood trauma, during which you will develop skills that you missed out on as a child. You will gain an understanding of where you are and receive concrete tools to take steps towards recovery. As a result, you will be able to face life better than ever before. The course consists of four elements, derived from the book “Healing Tasks” by James Kepner.
The four healing tasks
Support from others
Find and receive enough support to handle the pain of the wounds, so that life becomes livable
Develop self-support
Grow in self-confidence and confidence in God’s help, moving from helplessness to strength
Processing traumas
Undoing what was done to you and learning to give yourself what you didn’t receive. Grieving over the life you have missed
Restructuring your life
Integrating your traumatic experiences so that they enrich your life
For who?
- You are eager to actively work on your recovery. After all, you need a good dose of willpower to get through the course on your own.
- You have one or more people in your social network who support you or whom you can ask to walk alongside you while you take the course. You will need them for various assignments.
- You are in a reasonably safe and stable situation. Processing trauma requires a lot, and a sufficiently safe environment is of great importance in order to process traumatic experiences.
- You like to be in control of your recovery process. That is very healthy. You have sustained traumas due to your powerlessness in threatening situations. In this course, you determine the pace at which you complete the lessons. You may take a short, long, or very long time to do it. It is all about your recovery.
If all these points apply to you, the course will provide what you are looking for. If not all points apply, I advise you to discuss this with me or with another therapist.
What it is not
I want to be very honest with you and not sell you a quick fix. Early childhood trauma means that something is missing from the foundation of your existence. It takes a lot of time and effort to finally learn what you did not learn in your early years.
What it is
The course is like a buoy that provides stability in the storm of processing. You are given a powerful structure that you can follow step by step and always fall back on. This helps you determine for yourself which element you need to focus on at any given moment.
have reached their ‘expiry date’
Perhaps you are thinking right now: “I have already talked so much about my past. I am done dealing with my wounds.” I can identify with that, because that is how I felt too. However, in 2015, I reached a point where my survival strategies no longer worked. They had reached their ‘expiry date’.
So do realize that if you do nothing, you will reach a point where you can no longer continue the way you used to, or do not want to. Your negative thoughts and feelings will persist and you will start to feel increasingly desperate. Important people around you will find it increasingly difficult to cope with your pessimism and will want to give up.
In the book ‘When Storms in Your Life’, you can read about how God believed in Job and how he had the strength to persevere. You too have strength within you; that is why you have held on until now! I encourage you to trust in that and confront your past. There is really a way up.
If you would like to be notified when the course is available, please sign up via the button.