Breaking the Cycle of Trauma: How Fear and Power Trap Humanity

4 min read5 days ago

Today, the urgency of the situation is palpable. Everyone claims victory, yet losing has become the new winning. Both sides in every conflict believe they are the heroes, yet both continue to perpetuate the cycle of abuse. They pass on their trauma, acting out of fear rather than love.

When living in survival mode, our brains do not process life as they should. Instead, we rely on a primal part of our brain to make decisions. Leading to a paradox where, rather than healing, we continue to pass trauma from one generation to the next like a cursed inheritance.

History repeats itself, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Fear and Survival Mode

We all need to heal to end this endless cycle of suffering. But how can we achieve that?

Everything around us seems to force us into survival mode as if the system is designed to keep us trapped.

We must dismantle toxic masculinity and our collective obsession with power and supremacy. We need to teach love, safety, and acceptance. Healing must occur not only as individuals but also as a species.

We must evolve, just as we have so many times before. Because even one more human life lost to senseless violence is one too many.

The Role of Leadership and Media

Those opposing any conflict — those we fight or demonize — are often just like us. They have no control over the war and have been fed a different reality from the one we know. It is not their fault.

The blame lies with leadership, the complicit media, and opportunistic companies profiting from chaos and division. For instance, media outlets often sensationalize conflicts, perpetuating fear and division. Similarly, leaders who prioritize power and control over the well-being of their people contribute to the perpetuation of trauma.

Consider the contradictions in our world: Islam came to teach equality to Arabs, yet some so-called Muslim countries control every aspect of women’s lives with the same toxic masculinity that was meant to be dismantled.

This issue is not limited to the East; the West is rife with it as well. The central question is how much power a system can exert over its people.

Even in the so-called free world, information about the pandemic from experts was censored. Do you see the irony? The supposed leader of democracy and freedom silenced voices for the sake of control.

The Patterns We Never Learn From

Currently, we see a rise in antisemitism, homophobia, and discrimination around the globe. Patterns continue to repeat themselves.

The term “antisemitism” is being weaponized in various contexts. If you criticize the actions of a country or its leaders, you risk being labeled antisemitic — even if your critique targets policy rather than people.

This cycle is a familiar script, recycled with different faces. Wars begin, and peace becomes an afterthought. Everyone claims to desire peace, but usually only after they have fought their war.

Why Healing Is the Only Way Out

No one should have to die — absolutely no one. Yet leaders, much like narcissists, often sacrifice their people to protect themselves and refuse to take accountability.

They may wear different masks, but they follow the same toxic patterns.

In contrast, ordinary people — people like you and me — coexist every day. We meet, we talk, we connect. Across cultures and borders, we have already demonstrated that coexistence is possible.

However, those in power strive to convince us that we are different and cannot understand each other.

The truth is, we are not different. We are all human. It is time to remember that.

A Call to Action

To break the cycle of trauma, we must begin the process of healing — healing ourselves, healing each other, and healing the systems that keep us trapped in survival mode.

The cycle ends when we choose love over fear, connection over division, and accountability over control.

Each life is invaluable, and no future is worth building if it rests on the suffering of the innocent.