Evaluating Trauma Education Designed Within a Spiritual Framework

Abstract

The invasion of trauma images from the past into the present can lead to dissociation. Jung recognized the soul fragmentation that can result from dissociation. Researchers reporting an inverse correlation between spiritually focused interventions and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suggest that understanding the spiritual context of trauma might add prognostic value. The spiritually based strategies frequently requested by those with PTSD include imagery and traditional/cultural healing. Research demonstrates that offering the brain right hemisphere aligning processes such as therapeutic art and imagery can provide neurological and emotional release and allow healing to happen. Acknowledging that the research calls for exploration of the most beneficial ways to address the spiritual and soulful manifestations of trauma, a Trauma Recovery Certification training program was designed to address the effects of trauma on the human spirit and to provide right hemisphere aligning strategies for healing the soul fragmentation that can result from trauma and dissociation. Qualitative and quantitative program evaluation results indicate that graduates of the Trauma Recovery Certification training advance their knowledge of the relationships between trauma and the human spirit and heal their own unhealed spiritual concerns and soul fragmentation resulting from their previous traumas.