Overcoming PTSD
The art of resiliency is symbolized in the Chinese proverb: “The bamboo that bends is stronger than
the oak that resists.”
Even though the bamboo’s tensile strength resembles steel, and its toughness is similar to oak, bamboo is highly elastic and desired in earthquake-prone areas. Focused on full life support, Asians build houses with bamboo, believing it encourages living with consistent, flexible endurance.1 When dealing with the strong emotions of trauma and PTSD, there is a certain rigidity (resembling the toughness of oak) that interferes with the art of flexibility, aka emotional fluidity (as desired in bamboo’s elasticity). Practicing emotional fluidity strengthens resilience by allowing appropriate full-strength, healthy expression of the broad continuum of emotion; not becoming intensely stuck or repressing any emotion.