This is the last video in this 3-part series on helping parts stuck in trauma time understand that it’s 2025 and not some year in the past. Last week I talked about using a timeline. Today, I want to talk about using anchors.
You can think of anchors as objects that help you understand you are in the present. These objects are evidence that you can’t be back in 2015, for example. Back then, you were 7 and there’s no way you had those car keys that are hanging on the wall by the door.
Anchors might be pictures, such as pictures of you with the pet you have now but didn’t have then. Or pictures of you with your partner or friend. Or it might be pictures of you that show you are living in a completely different part of the country. Maybe you grew up in Nebraska, but now you live in Denver. You know there were no mountains near you where you grew up, so seeing a pictures with mountains and a caption “Home sweet home in Denver” is a jolt to young parts who still believe they are in Nebraska.
Anchors can be placed throughout your home. Put them in rooms that may be most triggering. For some people, the bathroom is such a place, so having proof that this isn’t your childhood bathroom can be helpful.
Time can be another trigger. For instance, bedtime can be a trigger for parts. Having something on your bed that you love but didn’t have as a child can be helpful. That might be a beautiful comforter you got to pick out. Or maybe it’s a picture of you holding your child on the bedside table. Maybe it’s a picture of you with your first tattoo, something you weren’t allowed to get before you left your childhood home. Whatever helps your parts remember that this is now, and not back then in your traumatic childhood. You might find it helpful to have a copy of your timeline in multiple rooms of your home. The timeline itself can be another anchor helping to hold you to the present.