This post is continued in the text after the video. There is a detailed explanation of the mechanism and solution for those interested in changing the way they feel. This article when consumed with the video and text will help in both understanding and in demonstrating that there is no need for ongoing suffering.
The concept or idea of trauma is is usually created when something that we perceive as unacceptable, unexpected and bad happens. At this point it's good to notice that not everyone will be affected by the same event in the same way because their expectations, values and what they consider good or bad can vary wildly. This means trauma is personal and subjective, meaning the same experience will traumatise one person but not another.
Being traumatised is essentially the creation of an idea of the importance and impact of an event that becomes an active trigger, meaning that it brings thoughts of that event repetitively into a present moment long after the opriginal event.
The activity of a trigger is simply based on the importance we give to the idea underlying it. If we believe an event from our past now defines how we feel and is important, our system of consciousness will bring thoughts of that event into the present often. Why? Because the system simply and elegantly reminds you to think of the things that you have decided to make important.
The more important you make an experience the more it will be triggered as thoughts later. So what does that mean for letting go of trauma? It's great news. It turns out that the importance of an idea must be maintained in order for the trigger to remain. The system automatically deprioritises the ideas or more to the point thoughts of the ideas that you no longer consider important. Meaning over time they can easily cease to be triggers.
So what's happening in the case of trauma. In order to understand that, we must learn what maintains the importance of a trigger or underlying idea and what would dissolve the importance, which it turns out is a very simple and understandable mechanism. Our interest in the thoughts associated with the idea is what decides if an idea is important or not. If we compulsively listen to the thoughts associated with the idea it stays important, if we lose interest in the thoughts the importance fades.
So how do we dissolve the importance and actively let go? Unfortunately, trying to let go of a specific idea actually focusses our attention on it, meaning that trying to let go of a specific idea makes the idea even more important. So trying to let go, discussion of it and listening to the thoughts of it in your mind are all counter productive.
The only reliable way to dissolve and let go of an idea that you have made important, and what could be more important than your idea that an event from your past now defines how you feel, is to redirect your attention away from thoughts of it repetitively. Meaning we must see that we are thinking of it and choose to immerse 100% of our interest in the senses, rather than trying not to think.
The challenge is that we need to become conscious enough of our thoughts to see them as they begin and redirect repetitvely which takes practice. That practice must be multi-dimensional and regular and includes focussed and unfocussed meditation, presence practice, conscious communication and more in order to affect all of the differing types of trigger that will bring the thoughts to mind in different situations.
The good news is that it doesn't take as long as you may think and it reverses the triggers completely, meaning that the thoughts of the past event no longer intrude on your present. Having the space, time and discipline to practice is all that is necessary, hence why butterfly program is effective.
