How can you give feedback to someone who is resistant to change due to past experiences or trauma?

Giving feedback to someone resistant to change requires sensitivity and understanding. Here are some steps you might consider: 1. Listen actively, empathize, and validate their feelings. 2. Ensure that the feedback environment is safe. 3. Emphasize the benefits of change. 4. Acknowledge that change can be difficult and that everyone has their own pace for adapting. 5. Connect the proposed changes to their personal goals and values. 6. Provide options or alternatives for change. 7. Understand that change might take time. Remember, the key is to be compassionate and understanding. It's crucial to approach the situation with empathy, acknowledging their past experiences while gently nudging them towards a positive change.

When giving feedback to someone resistant to change due to past experiences or trauma, we must approach with empathy and understanding. Resistance is often a protective mechanism, a shield against the pain of unresolved emotions. Before addressing behavior change, we must first address these underlying emotions. This involves creating a safe space for the individual to express and process their feelings. A powerful tool in this process is forgiveness. Forgiveness is not about condoning past wrongs, but about releasing their hold on the present.

Healing involves revisiting past experiences, reinterpreting them through the lens of our adult understanding, and offering the love, comfort, and reassurance that the child within us needed. We must also address the issue of deserving. Many people carry a deep-seated belief that they are not deserving of happiness, success, or love. This belief can be a significant barrier to change. It’s crucial to challenge this belief, affirm the individual’s inherent worth, and reinforce the idea that they are deserving of all the good that life has to offer.

Resistance generally means a person has; **an EXPECTATION about the input/outcome that runs counter to what you expect **an INVESTMENT in a different input/outcome to yours **an ATTACHMENT to a different input/outcome than yours **a FEAR about the input/outcome **a DESIRE for a different input/output to yours. Your feedback receiver may be grappling with any one of these. Use your curiosity and enquiring/hearing skills to gather information to create a picture of what's making up this resistant/trauma reaction. The solution always appears as you're examining and contemplating the challenge, so keep curious and you'll find your in.

One thing I have found helpful is truly “stepping” into another persons shoes is to peer into their world. I believe resistance can be a strategy or process that has been developed from environment which could have been habitual, kept the person safe, comfortable or protective which has served this individual for many years. And it’s genuinely something they value. To be able to consider a change is to compassionately understand where another is orientating then delve into their mind and heart. To understand this more explorative questions are good to find out more about a belief or thought and work out ways you can support or develop those changes. Whilst you might bring a perspective forward it does require the other person to step in!