A friend (also a therapist) told me that after experiencing a trauma what a person needs most is to tell what happened to them — and to be believed.  The healing process begins by being heard and trusted as credible.  From that solid start one is then able to find the next step on their healing journey. 

I imagine the reason some people don’t share about the traumas they have endured is for fear that they won’t be believed.  To hold one’s silence can feel much safer than having a harmful, life-altering reality denied.  Such invalidation might cause a mental and emotional tailspin, a crushing multiplication of the pain. 

The answer, however, is not to withhold one’s story altogether, but to discern who is capable of handling it with reverence.  Not everyone is prepared for this privilege.  Yet there are people who know how to hold the pieces of another’s heart.  There are people willing to help the healing begin.    

May you be inspired!