Turning Pain into Purpose: Becoming a Somatic Practitioner

Summary:

Is walking with others in their pain something that tugs at your heart? Turning pain into purpose is an incredible opportunity to explore the meaning in your suffering, redemption and remarkable healing. Considering a career in Trauma informed coaching is a step in the healing journey that offers Post Traumatic Growth. 

Over the years, we’ve often been asked: “How can I do what you do?” “How can I support other survivors of trauma?” “How can I take what I’ve been through and use it for good?” In response, we’ve created what we call the “4 P’s Formula” for turning pain into purpose.

Pain + Passions + People = Purpose

Whether your intentions are to be an ally for survivors or if becoming a Trauma Informed Coach (TIC) aligns with your desire to repurpose your pain into something good, this blog post will help you make that choice. The “4 P’s Formula” is a method the Healing Hub team created to serve as a guide to help uncover how to walk with  survivors down the path of healing. The world certainly needs more of that. 

Here are 4 things you should know if you’re considering a career in the trauma-informed coaching space:

1. Your journey through pain comes first
2. Your personal commitment to your passion will carry you through.
3. The people you’ll pour into are your people.
4. Your purpose is uncovered through exploring your pain, passion and finding your people.

1. Your journey through pain comes first. 

 Would you have the emotional capacity to safely hold space for clients, and not get triggered yourself?  We’ve all heard the saying, “hurt people, hurt people. But healed people heal people”. This is absolutely true. A generous amount of healing is required before walking with others in their pain. It’s also important that you have the emotional, mental and physical capacity to hold space for others, otherwise you could re-traumatize yourself, or cause further trauma for the survivor. Ultimately, honoring your pain comes with having a career in this field. 

“After my assault in 2018, I spent far too much time feeling numb and disconnected, crushed under the weight of trauma and stuck in a seemingly endless shame cycle for years. It took 3 years of desperately searching for hope and peace for me to find and complete several of the Healing Hub programs with Britt and they changed my life. After working hard in these programs and making changes in my personal life, I was able to free myself of the shame I had been experiencing and have learned to live and operate under the beautiful truths that I am more than enough and I have everything I need inside of me to heal.” - Meg, Trauma Informed Coach with the Healing Hub

 

2. Your personal commitment to your passion will carry you through.

You are allowed to hate what happened to you, while also being grateful for the opportunities it’s presented to you. In fact, we would say to embrace your pain and use it as fuel for your passion. What are your pain points and how can you choose to righteously hate them? Whether you’re a survivor of childhood trauma, sexual abuse, domestic violence or another type of abuse turning this pain into wanting to provide support for others will carry you through. Some examples of this are ending sexual violence, ending generational trauma or creating a trauma informed world. This work is hard, but understanding your pain will lead you to your specific passion.

3. The people you’ll pour into are your people. 

Those that have experienced similar pain are those that you will have a unique ability to empathize with. Showing up for your client is also being able to understand their experience and suffering on a deeper level. Therefore, connecting with people that carry similar pain is a beautiful way to gather your community. 

4. Your purpose is uncovered through exploring your pain, passion and finding your people. 

Through spending time navigating your pain points, exploring your passion, and connecting with your people you will understand where your purpose lies. If you are a survivor who aims to compassionately hold space for others to heal, these 3 clues (pain, passion, people) will help you get started on discovering the purpose you could create. 

“I created this platform because, well, I've been in your shoes. I've trudged through the wake of trauma, convinced life would never change. Now, after nearly two decades of personal healing & hands-on work within the recovery space, my hope is that in our journey together--you find understanding, acceptance, compassion, connection, safety & purpose.” - Britt, Trauma Informed Coach and Founder of the Healing Hub

To learn more about exactly what it means to be a trauma informed coach, and how it differs from being a therapist, we’ve written a blog post: Difference Between Trauma Informed Coaching & Therapy.

Finally, here are some resources provided by Moving the Human Spirit, where you can earn your Trauma Informed Coach Certification. It is the only Trauma Informed Coaching Certification accredited by the gold standard of coaching: the International Coach Federation. We also recommend The Embody Lab and Somatic Experiencing International.

Check out these blog posts:

• TIC: How To Get Started in the Field 
• Three Steps to Defining Your Coaching Niche
• TIC: The Basics 

For additional information about the Healing Hub's specific philosophy, free to explore our Core Values or you can find more information on Britt's Trainings, Experience & Certifications here.