Responding to Soul Injury: Tools for Hope and Healing.

Abstract

Soul Injury is defined as a wound that separates a person from their real self, caused by unmourned loss and hurt, unforgiven guilt and shame, and fear of helplessness or loss of control. Tools and interventions have been developed to guide people impacted by Soul Injury. This study assessed the effectiveness of 12 tools and interventions provided during a 4-day Soul Injury Leadership Institute. This 2-part investigation included an online survey of participants who had attended a 4-day Institute training and a post-Institute narrative inquiry conducted as virtual structured interviews. Ninety-one professionals completed the online survey, which inquired about the impact of specific Soul Injury tools and interventions on the respondents' personal and professional life. The Anchor Your Heart tool was the most frequently used tool and had the most enduring utilization across time and settings. Qualitative data collected in virtual interviews with 15 volunteers demonstrated the power of the Write/Tell Your Story technique in which storied narratives permit an individual to integrate powerful experiences such as traumatic events, serious illness, and even death, providing further validation that Soul Injury is an important human phenomenon.