Butterfly, Emerging

Abstract

The prevalence of traumas such as sexual violence is difficult to measure. However, it is fairly widely accepted that 1 in 5 women and 1 in 33 men will be a victim of sexual violence in her or his lifetime. Because of complicating factors to this type of trauma, survivors may not readily identify themselves as that. Healing arts and yoga help survivors to process traumatic energy and thoughts without having to delve into those dark and painful caverns. This chapter shares first person experience of sexual violence and navigating healing, as well as professional experience with other survivors, to illustrate the importance of trauma-informed healing and expressive arts when healing from trauma.