See me! See me! Oh my goodness they see me, I need to hide….

Real connection is vital, healing, whether the connection is to another human being, an animal, nature, or even to an idea, to understanding, or to a skill, any honest connection can be life-giving. Trauma “embeds in us” because we feel “emotionally unsupported in the midst of fear and pain that exceeds our ability to integrate the experience with our own resources.”

The latest neuroscience is showing just how important connection is for human beings to thrive. Without connection learning is not possible. Connection is exciting, but also terrifying.  We crave real connection and yet we sometimes run from it, hide, especially when connection has been dangerous.

How do you foster deep caring connection in your setting?

How do you stay in connection with yourself whatever erupts?

How do you help students connect to themselves, to each other, and to the material they are trying to learn?

 

(Bonnie Badenoch (2018), Healing Trauma Summit, Sounds True. And (2017) The Heart of Trauma: Healing the Embodied Brain in the Context of Relationships, New York: Norton.)

Photo Credit: Judy Murphy