The mass shooting in Orlando, killing at least 50 of our queer brothers and sisters, injuring 53 more is a horrible, unspeakable trauma for the GLBTQI… community. I want to share some ways to cope with trauma and tragedy that I am doing.
* Take care of yourself: be alone, if that’s what you need, or be with loved ones. Get hugs, kisses, cry together, hold each other. Pride celebrations this month, and candle light vigils and prayer services offer community opportunities.
*Grieve however you need to. Be angry. Be sad. Withdraw. Jump into action. Cry. Scream. Sit quietly. There is no right or wrong way to grieve.
*Focus on what helps you. Today, I am focusing on the individual people who were senselessly murdered, getting to know their names, who they were, what they were known for. I am holding each one in my heart and mind. Meditate on them, pray for them, their families and loved ones, for us.
*Ignore those infuriating things you can’t do anything about: the media, the glorification of the shooter, the manipulations by politicians, the ignorant and cruel comments you may hear on social media or from people around you.
*Breathe, deeply. Focus on something peaceful, something beautiful. I spend time looking at a salmon colored poppy that just opened in my garden, soaking in the unique beauty of each individual being in creation. Take a walk in the woods. Walk a labyrinth. Go for a run, or a bike ride. Dance. Sing. Sing for our lives. Punch a pillow. Scream. Laugh. Let whatever you are feeling run through your body and then release it. Over and over. And again.
*Love always wins. When you feel love, when you let it in your heart, focusing on a moment of love and appreciation, it is a high vibration that streams through you and out from your heart, radiating that energy 60 times more powerfully than any thought. Love will raise your personal frequency and shift your feelings of despair, anger, hate, fear and all those other feelings that have very low-frequency. Even if you can’t stay in the love, allow yourself to be where ever you are and try to oscillate your feelings back to love when you can. Every moment focused on love rebuilds your spirit, your immune system and your physical self. The lower frequency emotions of anger, hate and fear will raise your blood pressure, shut down your immune system and harm your digestive track, for starters. Just 5 minutes of anger will shut down your immune system for at least 6 hours.
*Take that anger and put it into concrete action: Vote in November. Agitate for what you believe in. Pray. Speak out. Love. Love. LOVE. Love always wins. Always.
Blessings, my friends,
Christine Cantrell, PhD
Psychologist