What Abstract Art Reveals About the Invisible Wounds of CPTSD & healing

“There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception.” — Aldous Huxley

When words fracture under the weight of memory—when pain is too complex, too fragmented, or too silent—art speaks. For me, abstract art has become that voice. A language without letters. A way to paint what trauma cannot phrase. My goal by creating my abstract art is to understand my soul and what abstract art reveals about the invisible wounds of complex PTSD and what is means to heal this type of trauma.

The Unseen Reality of CPTSD

Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD) doesn’t always scream; it hums beneath the surface, quiet but persistent. Unlike a single traumatic event, CPTSD is often rooted in prolonged emotional injury—neglect, betrayal, repeated abuse. Its symptoms don’t present neatly. They disorient, distort, and fragment identity.

The hardest part? The invisibility of it all. People often see us functioning and assume we are fine. But inside, the architecture of safety, trust, and self-worth has collapsed. There are no X-rays for grief. No MRIs for memories. And no standard vocabulary for the haunted.

Why Abstract? Because Trauma Isn’t Linear

Trauma doesn’t follow a narrative arc. It loops, vanishes, resurfaces. So when I sit before a canvas, I don’t begin with a plan. I let color, texture, and movement guide me.

• Sharp reds might represent a panic I couldn’t voice in childhood.

• Smudged blacks echo emotional numbness.

• Violent brushstrokes speak of nights I dissociated under a calm mask.

• Gentle curves and unexpected bursts of light suggest moments of hope—rare, but sacred.

Abstract art doesn't require explanation, and that’s its power. It allows me to feel without filter, to express without decoding. Where language demands logic, abstraction accepts paradox. Where society urges resolution, painting gives space to what is unresolved.

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The Canvas as a Mirror

There’s something alchemical about watching internal chaos take form. The more I engage with abstraction, the more I recognize patterns—emotional fingerprints I hadn’t noticed before.

Sometimes a painting frightens me. Other times, it brings unexpected relief. But always, it reveals a part of me that’s real, even if it's messy, even if it doesn't "make sense."

And in this process, I’m not just expressing—I’m witnessing myself.

Do you suffer from a mental illness?

• Yes I do and I am managing it well
• Yes I do and I would like to do Art Therapy to help me!
• Nope, but its interesting to learn about

Art as Survival, Not Aesthetic

To some, abstract art may seem inaccessible. “What does it mean?” they ask. But for those of us living with CPTSD, abstraction is not about meaning. It’s about bearing witness to the unspeakable. It’s survival made visible.

The goal isn’t to be understood by others. It’s to validate my own experience—one smear of paint at a time. And in that private recognition, something healing begins.

Creating a Language Beyond Words

Each piece I create is a piece of my history, my nervous system, my survival. It may not hang in galleries, but it hangs in my heart as proof: I existed through that. I felt that. I survived that.

In abstract art, I’ve found a sacred rebellion against silence. A way to turn pain into pigment. Chaos into composition. And absence into presence.

If you live with CPTSD, you don’t owe anyone clarity—but you deserve a space to express. Whether through color, music, movement, or metaphor, abstraction can become your language too. And in that language, healing is not just possible—it’s already happening and I am here to help you on your journey.

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Art therapy is a form of psychotherapy that uses art-making as a primary mode of expression and communication. It's facilitated by a trained art therapist and can involve various creative activities such as drawing, painting, sculpting, or collage. The focus isn't on creating a "good" or aesthetically pleasing piece of art, but rather on expressing thoughts, emotions, and experiences through the artistic process.