Your Body is Speaking to You: Overcoming Mental and Emotional Trauma in Hawai'i

 

We need more open and vulnerable communication within the family.

In Hawai’i we are made up of many immigrant families who have integrated within our society here. The sugar cane plantations were melting pots for diverse cultures we have coming together as one. They came together though the struggle and progression in the midst of complex political Hawai’i issues. These issues directly impacted families due to the harsh environment and social changes that scar Hawai’i today. Many of the issues were not talked about. And today we are suffering deep emotional and mental health trauma. As a Filipino-American with Hawaiian roots I myself am conflicted with the tremendous amounts shame, guilt, and apathy that comes from American colonization in the form of immigration. Furthermore, the deeper issues of how many Hawaiian lands were stolen, then privatized for profit grips my conscious. Simply, I feel responsible to expose these issues because our families who grew up in Hawai’i are now suffering because of this unspoken trauma.

Families are suffering because we don’t know how to communicate. According to the “State of Mental Health in America” report, Hawai’i ranks dead last in the nation for access to care for adults with mental illness. Some 68% of adults here didn’t get any mental health treatment the report said. No wonder domestic violence is at all time high, substance abuse is rampant, and today more than ever we are distracting ourselves with social media. Are we afraid to look within our selves and still find the historical residue clogging our hearts?

I started going to the chiropractor early last year and found myself realizing that I was carrying more pain than I expected. I recognized that I didn’t love myself. Because I was torturing myself and calling it service to others. My service to my community was an excuse to not look within myself and heal the brokenness that filled my heart. The fear of not affording a house here on Maui. The frustration of management corruption and chemical warfare in our communities. I was overwhelmed. I felt like I was drowning. I was becoming a victim.

But as I started to learn about body literacy and the mind body connection though holistic health practices, I started to learn to love myself again. I was learning to breath. To be still. I felt cared for by my practitioners. It was different from going into a cold, sterile, rigid room where I felt more like a number than a patient. This heart to heart connection with my chiropractor, physical therapist, life coaches, and nutritionist made me feel valued. I felt in control of myself again. I felt whole.

And that’s when it clicked. Today we are more worried and concerned about other people more than we are about ourselves. How can we serve others, if we ourselves are not healthy ourselves. We need more holistic health care, we need more people learning to love themselves, and we need more people communicating with fierce vulnerable heart content. We need authenticity. Imagine a Hawai’i where we can share with our neighbor how much they piss us off, and then come to a loving understanding at the end reconciled. Imagine if we can cry, shout, laugh, and share with one another again. What are we so afraid of? Are we really projecting our undealt fears, insecurities, and trauma onto others?

Our political system and historical trauma is real. For those that are not from here, you probably wont understand. But those of you who are  know the miscommunication, emotional tensions, and neglected frustrations of the past that are causing deep mental and emotional health issues today. If we don’t deal with them now, someone else will take our positions. We need to stop taking each other down, but lift one another up and guide others towards a more holistic health journey. Before we can together deal with the dense political and historical issues of the past we need to start with ourselves now.