Feelings

We talked about numbing earlier and the importance of learning how to feel again. I find though that even when survivors are ready to begin allowing themselves to feel-they often cannot find words to express their feelings. They often have a block when it comes to putting their emotions into words.

"Dr. Henry Krystal, a pioneer of trauma science, coined the term, alexithymia. That means lacking a language to express emotion. Professor Krystal observed that traumatized survivors could not convey emotion, even when they could feel it. Other colleagues found brain scans of PTSD patients with reduced blood flow to the speech center. We all know the term, "scared speechless."-Dr. Frank Ochburg 
http://www.giftfromwithin.org/html/FAQ-Professionals-PTSD-Treatment-for-Emotional-Numbing.html

Some of my clients have found it easier to start expressing feelings through art, pictures, drawing or music. Here are a few pictures I found on the internet --can you find ones that express the way your feeling? See if you can begin to put words to some of the emotions below. (I am not computer savy so I apologize the pictures are not neccessarily put together in a pretty way)