By: Heather Halligan

For many people, trauma does not announce itself dramatically. Instead, it lingers quietly—shaping choices, limiting creativity, and keeping individuals stuck in cycles of fear, disconnection, or unfulfilled potential. In Creating After Abuse: How to Heal from Trauma and Get on With Your Life, Dr. Lisa Cooney addresses this often-overlooked reality, offering readers practical tools to heal, reconnect with themselves, and move forward with clarity and purpose.

The book speaks directly to those who feel stalled by past experiences, whether those experiences are widely recognized as trauma or not. Through a compassionate, body-centered approach, Dr. Cooney challenges common assumptions about healing and reframes trauma as something that can be understood, worked with, and ultimately transformed.

At the heart of Creating After Abuse is a deceptively simple starting point. “The very first step is acknowledgment without judgment,” Dr. Cooney explains. She notes that many people attempt to improve their lives while simultaneously minimizing or intellectualizing the impact of what they’ve been through. “But what we refuse to acknowledge, we cannot transform.”

When individuals can honestly recognize their experiences, something shifts. “When someone finally says, ‘Yes—this happened, it affected me, and I’m ready for something different,’ an enormous amount of energy becomes available,” she says. “That’s when the shift begins. We stop fighting the past and start reclaiming our power from it.”

From there, Dr. Cooney emphasizes the necessity of safety. “The next step is creating safety—internally and externally—so the nervous system can finally exhale.” Without that sense of safety, she explains, “no amount of mindset work will stick.” With it, however, “change becomes not only possible but inevitable.”

Rethinking What Trauma Really Is

A significant theme in Creating After Abuse is dismantling misconceptions that prevent people from recognizing trauma in their own lives. “The biggest misconception is the belief that trauma is only ‘big,’ dramatic events,” Dr. Cooney says. In reality, she explains, “trauma is any experience that overwhelms your capacity to cope.”

This broader definition includes experiences many people never label as traumatic: “neglect, emotional invalidation, chronic stress, cultural or generational conditioning, or even the internalization of shame.” When trauma is not fully acknowledged, its effects may persist in ways that are not immediately obvious.

Another common belief Dr. Cooney challenges is the idea that time alone heals trauma. “Time doesn’t heal it—presence does,” she says. Without intentional engagement, “the body holds on to the unresolved patterns.”

She also addresses the pressure many people feel to “get over it” through positive thinking or spiritual bypassing. “Trauma is stored in the body, not the mind,” she explains. When people ignore the somatic component, they often feel discouraged. “They’re not failing—they’re using the wrong tools.”

Restoring Safety in the Body

Many readers of Creating After Abuse struggle not only emotionally but also physically, experiencing tension, numbness, or disconnection from their own bodies. Dr. Cooney’s approach begins with restoring the body’s capacity to feel safe. “My approach begins by teaching the body that it is safe to feel again,” she explains.

During traumatic experiences, sensation itself can be overwhelming. As a result, “the body protects us by going numb, tightening, or shutting down.” Through breathwork, somatic awareness, grounding practices, and guided inquiry, Dr. Cooney helps the nervous system move out of survival states and into regulation. “Once the body feels safe, shame begins to dissolve naturally.”

The agency plays a central role in this process. “When someone learns they can make choices about how they breathe, how they move, and how they respond internally, they reconnect with their inherent power.” Safety, she emphasizes, “isn’t a concept; it’s a felt experience. We build that experience step by step.”

Rebuilding Trust, Creativity, and Connection

Trauma often disrupts relationships and interferes with a person’s ability to complete projects or pursue goals. According to Dr. Cooney, this disruption stems from broken trust. “Trauma disrupts relationships because it interrupts trust—trust in the world, trust in others, and most importantly, trust in ourselves.”

When the nervous system is constantly scanning for danger, “intimacy and creativity become secondary priorities.” To address this, Creating After Abuse introduces practical tools designed to rebuild self-trust and relational trust.

One such tool is the practice of “micro-truths,” which Dr. Cooney describes as “speaking small, present-moment truths that bring you back into alignment with yourself.” She offers a simple exercise readers can use immediately: “Pause three times today and ask yourself, ‘What is true for me in this moment?’ Don’t judge the answer—just notice it.” She adds, “This alone begins to rebuild the bridge between your inner world and your outer actions.”

What Healing Can Look Like

After years of supporting survivors, Dr. Cooney remains moved by the transformations she witnesses. “The transformations that move me the most are the ones where people rediscover parts of themselves they thought were lost forever,” she says.

She has seen clients “who spent decades feeling broken suddenly reconnect with joy,” and others “stand on stages and inspire thousands.” What surprises her most is the speed at which change can occur once safety and truth are present. “Trauma can take years to accumulate, but breakthroughs can happen in a moment of clarity, presence, or courage.”

These moments, she says, are reminders that healing is always possible. “What emerges is not just survival—it’s brilliance, creativity, and an authentic sense of self that often feels like coming home.”

Creating After Abuse is available now on Amazon.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical or psychological advice. Healing and trauma responses vary from person to person. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional or therapist for personalized guidance regarding trauma and healing.