Bridging the Divide: Integrating Holistic and Clinical Approaches in Healing Trauma for Young People

Currently, the interventions available for young people in care are often clinical and primarily focused on behavioural changes or cognitive understanding. While these approaches serve a necessary purpose, they can fail to address the emotional and spiritual challenges that young people face. For many of these young people, particularly those affected by trauma, the traditional routes of therapy can feel distant or disconnected from their lived experiences. In fact, there’s often a missing piece: the holistic and emotional care that acknowledges the complexity of their feelings, the deep scars of trauma, and their need for connection—both to themselves and the world around them.

Young people in care face a wide range of emotional challenges—constant transitions, separation from family, traumatic experiences, and the struggle to find a sense of belonging. These difficulties can manifest in anxiety, depression, feelings of abandonment, or emotional outbursts. Traditional methods of therapy can sometimes feel inadequate, leaving them with few tools to address the underlying emotional distress they face.

This is where holistic-based approaches, such as ceremony, sound healing, and other nature-connected practices, can fill a crucial gap. These methods recognize the importance of working with the whole person—body, mind, and spirit. By incorporating nature-based rituals and energy work into therapeutic practices, young people can engage in a process of healing that feels connected to their inner world and the world around them. These approaches can offer healing on a deeper level than traditional therapies by addressing emotions, offering tools for self-regulation, and creating a space for personal reflection.

The History and Benefits of Ceremony in Ancient Communities

Ceremony has been an integral part of healing practices across cultures for centuries. In many ancient communities, ceremonies were not just about marking rituals; they were about emotional connection, personal transformation, and community healing. Ceremonies provided a sacred space for individuals to reflect on their life experiences, express gratitude, release emotional burdens, and call in new intentions. They connected people to the natural world and the greater energy of the universe, integrating the mind, body, and spirit into the healing process.

In these ancient traditions, ceremonies held deep meaning and were often used to mark important transitions—such as rites of passage, seasons of change, and emotional healing. They offered people the space to heal from personal struggles in a way that was holistic, empowering, and deeply transformative. The element of water, for example, was often used in these rituals to symbolize purification, renewal, and flow, guiding people through the process of letting go and moving forward.

However, these practices are largely absent from today’s systems of care, especially within the realm of social care and the lives of young people in care. While there are numerous clinical interventions available, there is a notable lack of emotionally and spiritually enriching methods like ceremony and sound healing, which can deeply support these young people in their emotional healing.

Sound Healing: Working with Trauma Without Words

One of the most powerful and non-invasive ways to support young people in their emotional healing is through sound healing. Sound healing involves using various frequencies, tones, and vibrations—such as those from gongs, singing bowls, or even the human voice—to help move stuck energy in the body and mind. For young people with trauma, especially those who have experienced difficulty expressing their emotions verbally, sound healing offers a way to work with deep emotional blockages without the need for words.

Through sound, we can clear emotional blockages, release trauma, and rebalance energy. This approach works directly with the vibration of the body, which can help shift emotions, reduce anxiety, and create an atmosphere of calm. When words fail or seem overwhelming, sound offers a safe, accessible outlet for emotional release and healing. For young people who have lived through trauma, sound healing can serve as a powerful alternative to traditional talk therapies.

My Ceremony: Harnessing the Power of Water and Sound for Emotional Healing

Recently, I had the privilege of facilitating a ceremony for two young girls, introducing them to the healing power of water and sound in a therapeutic yurt setting. The ceremony was designed not only to offer emotional healing but to make them feel actively involved in their therapeutic journey, as opposed to simply being told what to do.

We began by using water as a central element in the ceremony. Water holds both memory and vibration, meaning it can carry emotional energies, and when used intentionally, it can help facilitate healing. I guided the girls to decorate their water bottles—a simple but interactive activity where they wrote down their intentions and goals for healing. By charging the water with positive energy, they were invited to engage directly with their emotions, set intentions for personal growth, and learn the importance of letting go.

Ceremony Activity: Teaching the Management of Volatile Emotions

A central component of the ceremony focused on teaching young people to manage volatile or difficult emotions, which is a critical skill for those navigating trauma. Traditional clinical interventions often involve talking through emotions, cognitive-behavioral strategies, and emotional regulation techniques. While these approaches are valuable, they can sometimes feel distant or abstract for young people who struggle to verbalize their emotions, especially those who have experienced trauma or instability. This ceremony-based intervention provides a tangible and interactive way to engage young people in emotional self-regulation, bridging the gap between experiential learning and clinical practices.

A key part of the ceremony involved an exercise where the young people were invited to dissolve paper that symbolized emotions or experiences they wished to let go of. In the clinical context, such interventions mirror emotion-focused therapy (EFT) and somatic practices, which focus on allowing the body to release emotions rather than suppressing or intellectualizing them. By writing down what they wanted to release, they could externalize these feelings, creating a physical representation of the emotional burden they carried. The process of dissolving the paper in water allowed them to symbolically let go of these emotions in a gentle, non-confrontational way. This mirrored the cognitive-behavioral process of reframing negative thoughts and breaking the cycle of emotional overload, but in a more accessible, embodied manner.

In the context of trauma-informed care, water symbolism in the ceremony connects directly to the clinical understanding of emotional release. Water has long been seen as a natural metaphor for emotions—its fluidity reflects the constant ebb and flow of feelings, while its ability to cleanse is tied to the concept of emotional purification. This aligns with interventions that encourage the mind-body connection and the release of stored emotions within the body. For young people, this practice allows them to discharge intense or negative emotions without feeling overwhelmed by them. This is crucial in managing volatile emotions, as it gives them a sense of agency and empowers them to navigate their emotional landscape without feeling powerless.

While traditional clinical models often focus on self-regulation through verbal techniques, the physicality of the ceremony—specifically using water—acts as a somatic intervention. Young people could feel a direct connection between their emotional release and the water, experiencing it not only as a mental concept but as a physical sensation of relief. By incorporating an embodied ritual, we align with the clinical understanding that emotions are stored in the body, and through physical actions, we can release and transform these emotions into a more manageable state.

Among the girls who participated in these ceremonies, many had previously declined talking therapies and, following a multi-agency consultation, were considered not yet ready for cognitive or verbal-based therapeutic work. This highlights the importance of offering alternative, non-verbal approaches that meet young people where they are. The ceremonial use of water provided a gentle, accessible entry point into therapeutic engagement, bypassing the need for direct verbal processing while still enabling emotional release and healing. As a result, we observed notable improvements in mood, sleep hygiene, and a reduction in incidents of emotional dysregulation. Perhaps most significantly, the shared, embodied nature of the experience helped foster deeper trust and strengthened relationships between the young people and the adults involved—laying the groundwork for future therapeutic openness and emotional resilience.

This activity also directly connects to trauma-informed care principles, which emphasize the importance of creating safe spaces where young people can process their emotions without fear of judgment. The act of dissolving paper, paired with the collective participation in a group ceremony, provides a safe and supportive environment where emotions can be expressed, acknowledged, and ultimately released.

This combination of emotional externalization, physical release, and ritualized closure mirrors many of the strategies employed in more traditional therapeutic settings but adds a layer of depth and accessibility. It encourages young people to engage with their emotions in a holistic way, combining practical emotional regulation techniques with symbolic acts of release. Through the act of letting go, they learn to manage difficult emotions in a non-verbal and non-judgmental way, reinforcing a healthy coping mechanism that can be used in both immediate emotional moments and future therapeutic contexts.

The second part, a water-based sound bath, provided a soothing, non-verbal healing experience. Sound frequencies, have been shown to affect the nervous system positively by promoting relaxation and reducing stress. For anxious or angry teens, these vibrations can help calm the sympathetic nervous system, which is often heightened by trauma and stress, bringing them into a more balanced, parasympathetic state. Studies have demonstrated that sound therapy can help lower cortisol levels and reduce heart rate variability, which are often elevated in individuals with anxiety or trauma-related issues. The deep relaxation promoted by sound waves can also aid in improving sleep quality, which is a common struggle for traumatized teens who often experience disrupted sleep patterns. By offering this sound bath, the ceremony helped support emotional healing and promote the restoration of vital physiological functions, such as better sleep and stress resilience.

Kids Still Believe in Magic

The beauty of this ceremony was not only in its healing potential but also in the fact that it resonated with the natural wonder and magic that young people still believe in. While traditional therapy may feel clinical or distant, ceremonies that incorporate elements of nature, magic, and personal intention feel authentic and relatable. These young people, still immersed in their ability to dream and believe in something bigger, found a therapeutic approach that allowed them to explore their emotions through creativity and self-expression.

By allowing the girls to take part in something that felt more like magic than a “traditional therapy session,” I created a space where they felt in control of their healing, empowered to set their intentions, and actively engaged in the process of emotional transformation.

Healing Beyond the Divide: The Need for Holistic Approaches in Social Care

What is striking is that, while ancient societies have long understood the power of ceremony, nature-based healing, and the importance of working with emotions in a connected way, these tools are largely absent from modern systems of care—particularly in the lives of young people in care. These children go through some of life’s toughest transitions, yet they are not offered the emotional and spiritual healing methods that could help them thrive. Instead, we often rely on clinical, cognitive approaches that fail to address the emotional and spiritual complexities of their experiences.

Many events designed to support young people’s emotional well-being are often labeled as "mental health" interventions, which can inadvertently create a barrier and discourage engagement. The term can feel clinical and stigmatizing, making it harder for young people to connect. Ceremonies, on the other hand, offer a different approach—one that is experiential and free from labels—allowing young people to engage with their emotions in a more holistic and non-judgmental space.

Integrating holistic tools like ceremony and sound healing into social care practices is not just an innovation—it's a necessity. The current system of care separates mind and body, emotions and intellect, creating a disconnect in how young people are supported. By incorporating nature-based healing, sound therapy, and ceremony into young people's care plans, we can offer a more complete and effective approach to emotional well-being.

The time has come to bridge the gap between traditional clinical methods and holistic practices that recognize the whole person—body, mind, and spirit. Young people in care deserve more than just a system that addresses their behaviors; they need a system that helps them heal emotionally and spiritually. Through sound healing, ceremony, and water rituals, we can offer them the tools to connect with their emotions, express themselves, and heal in a way that is deeply empowering.

By blending ancient healing practices with modern therapeutic approaches, we can offer young people a truly transformative healing experience, allowing them to move forward with the resilience, confidence, and emotional strength they need to thrive. The magic of sound, water, and ceremony is not just in its healing potential but in its ability to bridge the divide and offer young people a new way of healing that speaks to their hearts, minds, and spirits.