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Talking about vicarious trauma and onto trauma from sexual abuse, I found myself very disturbed and saddened about this topic. Although I don't like to bring positive emotions into the therapeutic setting with my clients, in my mind I find that when a client talks about the topic of sexual abuse or trauma to be brave and liberating.
The tree is meant to represent life and hope into growing to a better place, which is probably why I must've added color to the tree. However I painted the tree trunk black because for a client to have experienced something traumatic, it brings a dark side to their story and what they had to experience and go through, which sometimes can transfer to the therapist (vicarious trauma).
The birds in my painting are supposed to represent the liberation and freedom a client must feel when talking about their experience of trauma. Personally, I think the birds are meant to represent a sense of giving the client peace of mind of being in a safe place to talk about their trauma without the fear of being judged.
I am really drawn to your picture, Stephanie. I love the fullness of the tree and the colors you used. What I find interesting is that the tree has no roots. The tree is sort of floating in the air along with the birds. I wonder if that has something to do with the issue of trauma..that loss of center and lack of groundedness in such an unpredictable situation. I'm also curious if the birds are flying towards or away from the tree.
ReplyDeleteThanks Libby!
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I was not self-aware myself about the tree not having any roots. I'm not sure what my thought processes were thinking during the lecture, all I remember is the subject of trauma being disturbing, and me trying to maybe get away from it.
When it comes to the birds I have to say I definitely wanted the birds to fly away from the tree, but some appear to be flying towards the tree as well. I think I wanted to say that trauma is something that comes and goes with clients and is not unusual for beginning social workers to feel uncomfortable when a client brings this subject up.