A person who experiences a traumatic event is not necessarily traumatized, unless they decide to be, which is often an entirely unconscious act.

True healing does not involve changing the event, avoiding the perpetrator (though this could still be a necessary, albeit unrelated, step), or understanding what happened in the past better.

It involves becoming conscious of the belief about oneself that was birthed when the event happened, observing where it is still active in the present moment, and dismantling that belief.

Dismantling is not the same thing as removing.

In this light, not only is healing a necessary ingredient to growth, because no matter what the scale, everyone experiences their own version of trauma, but it's also never-ending.

Buckle up.