The body has memory

The goal of this thesis is to examine how post-traumatic stress disorder impacts the body. In January of 2020, I had a severe panic attack triggered by movement. I was left scared and wondering if I would ever move past the events leading to this attack. To regain a sense of autonomy over my body and mind, I set out to better understand complex post-trauma stress disorder’s impact on my life.

Throughout this thesis, I discuss my thought process behind each piece. I go into my methods of making and reflections on the finished body of work. This body of work has evolved slowly and with careful consideration of my experience. Engaging with this subject matter from an artistic stance allowed me to examine my trauma and recovery story at a distance, thinking about it from a more objective place. I found myself writing, sketching, and reflecting, on my past experiences. The result was a body of work that varied, covering the spectrum of my experience. I look at all points of my recovery story ranging from a visual depiction of posttraumatic stress disorder, how the body can heal and untangle this experience within the medical community, and what it is like to live with chronic pain. This thesis has changed drastically from my original intention, but it reflects what it is like to process trauma. You are never sure what you are going find when we reach the other side.