Am I the only one who loves quotes? Early in my trauma healing journey, I’d place quotes everywhere. On my phone, while journaling, Pinterest boards, sticky notes, all places.
These quotes for trauma healing made me feel less alone, like someone has also been through what I’m going through. Even if a quote wasn’t intended for my exact scenario, they still helped me find the inspiration I needed.
Keep in mind these are mostly song lyrics from the first year of my healing, so these are from nineteen-year-old me in 2015. I welcome you to use these quotes as you see fit, and I hope they’re able to provide inspiration for your healing journey.
I invite you to explore support options here for a list of resources that support sexual trauma healing.
10 Inspirational Quotes for Trauma Healing
Seeing is deceiving
-Jessie J, Who You are
Dreaming is believing
It’s okay not to be okay
Can I quote this whole song? It’s powerful, vulnerable, and rooted in healing. It says what I say so often in my trauma-informed yoga classes: it’s okay to honor your emotions; they don’t define who you are as a person.
She believed she could, so she did.
-R.S. Grey, Scoring Wilder
Simple, popular, and a quote that carried me every day as my phone’s home screen. It takes a certain type of strength to keep believing, and it’s 100% worth it.
Gone was any trace of you, I think I am finally clean
-Taylor Swift, Clean
I sobbed when she played this song on her Reputation tour to acknowledge her sexual assault case. This song helped me so much during my first year of healing, and for her to view this song in the same way is why I’ll always be a Swiftie. I played this constantly when I felt the first bit of relief in my healing. It wasn’t much, but it was a start. I finally felt like I could manage the future.
I’m still breathing, I’m still breathing
-Sia, Alive
I’m alive
This is a powerful song (the bridge is where I lived for a few months.) It slowly progresses from a woman surviving to thriving. I used this song to remind myself that I’m still breathing, and that matters.
It’s always darkest before the dawn.
-Florence and the Machine, Shake It Out
Honestly, this entire song is a quote. But for keeping these quotes short and sweet, I chose this one. I don’t think we can just shake off trauma as easily as she says in the song, but there are a lot of golden nugget quotes to pull from. She also sings with such powerful emotion it’s hard not to get caught up in it.
Keep your head up, keep your love.
-Lumineers, Stubborn Love
This was a reminder that I could keep choosing love; toward myself, supportive friends and family. I didn’t need to become a hateful person. I wanted to remain a person full of love.
Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.
–Buddha
This is the quote that helped me shape what forgiveness meant to me. It’s about releasing anger, not saying what they did was okay. Everyone’s version of forgiveness is unique and you get to define it to suit your healing.
Piece by piece, he restored my faith
That a man can be kind
–Kelly Clarkson, Piece by Piece
I think the beauty of music is taking what resonates with you. This song is about finding a man who treats you right after an upbringing with an abusive father. It’s completely unrelated to my trauma, but this song reminded me that my trauma wasn’t caused by all men, just one. This also shows that healing takes time. It’s not an overnight transformation, and each little piece matters.
I picked myself back up
–Katy Perry, By the Grace of God
I put one foot in front of the other and I
Looked in the mirror and decided to stay
I was a huge Katy Perry fan in 2015. Massive. This song is about a relationship and not so much about sexual trauma, but the words stuck with me when I heard them. I think there comes a moment in many healing journeys where we don’t know if it’s worth it to go on, or to keep trying.
This helped me on days I chose to stay, and to keep trying. It’d ring in my head in the difficult moments that we can always take a moment to pick ourselves up and try again.
Go on and try to tear me down
–Demi Lovato, Skyscraper
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper
Anyone else remember this absolute anthem of strength? I can’t tell you how many times I’ve belted this song in my car, or placed it on the highest volume while I journaled in my first year of healing. It’s a song of such strength, and after my trauma, I truly felt like I had nothing left. This song reminded me that there was still a spark there, and I could keep going.
You never know how strong you are, until being strong is your only choice.
–Bob Marley
I 100% believe survivors of trauma are the strongest people I’ve met. No one can see your progress or negative days physically. Maybe people assume it’s easy because we keep pushing on, but it’s hard to describe what it’s like to use everything you have to go through another day.
The beginning of my journey was by far the most difficult, and I had little support. Strength was my only choice, and one day I was finally free of that. The dark days don’t last forever–even if it feels like they will. This was a quote that held my foundation when nothing else seemed to.
Overview
If you can’t tell, music is my main source of inspirational quotes. Something about songs allows the artist to bring in more emotion than a standalone quote. I hope these inspirational quotes give you motivation and encouragement on your own journey. If you’re looking for more than quotes for trauma healing, I welcome you to explore support options.
You are always worthy of support and healing.
I wish you the best on your journey, and until next time,
Take care.
