Trauma class offers peace, relief to bombing victims

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A woman screamed at the top of her voice then burst into uncontrollable sobbing that shook her body violently, shocking other participants in an exercise to soothe tension on Saturday.

Instructors calmed her down while telling the class that the eruption of emotions from the depths of her subconscious was a natural phenomenon.

"I felt I could no longer hold back my emotions. I felt my chest would explode and I tried very hard not to cry aloud so that I wouldn't disturb you, but I couldn't," the 22-year-old woman shared her "healing moment" when she felt her emotional burdens released.

Along with eight other participants, the woman took the one- day class organized by volunteers of Trauma Healing at the Sumantri Brojonegoro sports stadium in Kuningan, South Jakarta.

The project was jointly set by various community groups concerned about helping all Jakartan directly or indirectly traumatized by the Sep. 9 bomb blast outside the Australian Embassy, which is located close to the stadium.

"We chose the stadium as the venue for the healing activities, as it is close to ground zero. Many people fell victim to the incident just because they were in the area at the time of the blast," volunteer Dandan Hamdani told The Jakarta Post.

At least 50 participants have attended the course so far, seeking relief from their traumatic experiences through psychotherapy, hypnotherapy, meditation and yoga. The participants can also sign up for physical therapy and relaxation treatment through reflexology, acupressure, aromatherapy, biotherapy and acupuncture.

"We also introduce some basic techniques in simple exercises that can be done at any time, which helps individuals restore their strength and in turn, help others become stronger," said Gobind Vashdev of Capacitar Indonesia.

As is evident in its name -- capacitar is Spanish for empowerment -- Capacitar Indonesia is part of an international network of volunteers who learn and share healing techniques for themselves and people around them. Volunteers and participants master ways to stay healthy, at peace and emotionally balanced simply by improving their breathing techniques and postures.

Besides Capacitar, other groups taking part in the charity project are the University of Indonesia's crisis center, the Indian Culture Center, Asa Bangsa Foundation, Klub Mahesa and Anise Aromatik.

The Trauma Healing course is holding three free sessions that are open to the public, with the final session on Oct. 10.

Although the sessions were initially developed for people affected by the bombing, many said they joined the sessions to take a short break from their stressful days.

"I feel thankful that the session has healed my trauma from violence, which had been like a pebble in my shoe for many years," said another participant, eyes brimming with tears of relief.