Trauma therapist reads “It” by Stephen King

I really love reading books. I read all sorts of books — fantasy, romance, spirituality, psychology (of course!), historical fiction, historical non-fiction, educational … I’ll read just about anything. One genre I haven’t read too much of yet is horror/thriller. This week I decided to give a famous horror novel a shot.

“It” by Stephen King is both a famous book and horror movie. It centers around a group of misfits called “The Losers Club” as they take on a cosmic evil monster along two timelines. One timeline follows them as children, and the other timeline follows them as adults when they come back years later to battle the same monster again.

The book is (intentionally) disturbing, violent and explores all kinds of trauma and evil. It’s hard to say if I “enjoyed” the book or not, because of the themes it explores; however, I did appreciate the conversation it was having.

As a therapist who works with trauma survivors, horror as a genre hits me in a certain kind of way. Lots of people watch horror movies for entertainment — to intentionally feel the overwhelming thrill of being afraid. And perhaps unconsciously, to process the darkness and evil in the world.

There are other stories that try to explore these themes in a more contained way — epic fantasies like Lord of the Rings, dramas, even comedies. But the horror genre provides a unique window into the experience of trauma.

Part of what might make horror fun for some is feeling the depths of thrill and fear, and then getting to close the book or shut off the tv and realize that it isn’t real. Things like that would never happen.

Trauma survivors know all too well that horror does exist in real life. The experience of a trauma disorder is horror plus a feeling of helplessness — an inability to separate and “shut it off.” And unlike some other kinds of anxiety, when people have experienced trauma, the horror is completely real. There’s nothing anyone can say to take away from that. The unimaginable already happened.

In the book “It,” Stephen King plays around with the intersection between fantastical-monster-like-horror and the real horrors that exists in our world — murder, abuse, death, racism, domestic violence. Because of that, on some fundamental level the books rings true. The conversations the characters have about surviving and fighting with the darkness tap in to a very real conversation that I am always having with myself and often having with my clients.

There are many phases of trauma treatment. One of the first phases is establishing a sense of safety, and then finding ways to process and manage the trauma symptoms. There are many evidence based approaches that can provide real help in this area. Intrusive flashbacks and nightmares can decrease/disappear, distorted excessively guilty thoughts can diminish, your nervous system can regulate and not always be so on edge. Memories can truly become memories, and not be constantly intruding in your mind. You can re-engage in life again, live in your body, feel joy, and connect with others.

But there is another aspect to trauma treatment. Trauma fundamentally tears down the false assumption that most people walk around the world believing —- that nothing bad will happen, that the world is a generally safe place. That false assumption is incredibly functional and allows people to get through the day. But after you’ve experienced trauma, you don’t have the luxury of easily accessing that assumption anymore.

“What I can say is that people do create meaning for themselves after experiencing true horror. ”

Figuring out how to make meaning out of what you’ve experienced and the reality that we live in is a big part of trauma recovery. There is no “right” answer. There is no one answer. What I can say is that people do create meaning for themselves after experiencing true horror. And as a therapist, I feel honored to be part of each of my client’s journey’s as they embark on the process of trying to do just that.

While I don’t necessarily recommend that if you’re a trauma survivor you watch or read “It” to make meaning out of your trauma, for a very specific subset of people horror might provide some level of validation to what you’ve experienced. For the many others for whom horror will not be something helpful to watch, just remember that trauma recovery is a journey. By continuing to survive and giving yourself a chance to make meaning out of what you’ve experienced, you’re doing something truly incredible.