Conditions of Artistic Safety

By Tommie Ann Bower

My predators were winning. A debris field of drafts and reset strategies surrounded the couch where I watched tiny house videos over a bowl of potato chips for breakfast. This was a surprise because I can name my trauma triggers in three notes. But this time, a kudzu-like growth was smothering the hilly lobes of my prefrontal cortex. I couldn’t think my way out of stuck.

The latest science on trauma suggests running towards the disturbance in the force. But until I n...