Burn the Ships: A Brave Step Toward Trauma Healing

There’s a powerful metaphor tucked into the song Burn the Ships by for KING & COUNTRY. The phrase comes from a historical legend — when explorers would arrive on distant shores and then burn their ships, removing any possibility of turning back. It was a signal: There’s no retreat. The only way is forward.

For many of us doing the work of healing trauma, this metaphor hits close to home.

Trauma has a way of quietly convincing us that we need to stay tethered to the past — just in case. Just in case we need the old stories, the survival strategies, the familiar pain. Just in case moving forward feels too uncertain. Even when the past is painful, it can feel safer than the unknown.

But healing doesn’t happen by standing still.
At some point, we are asked to choose:
Do we keep looking back? Or do we gently, deliberately let go?

My Personal Connection: A Navy Family

This metaphor holds special meaning for me. I married into a family with strong Navy roots — a family that understands what it means to set sail, to leave behind solid ground, to trust the journey ahead. In a very real way, the image of burning the ships captures both the fear and freedom of making a firm decision not to return to old ways.

In trauma work, “burning the ships” might look like:

• Saying goodbye to self-blame and the stories that told you it was your fault.

• Ending relationships or environments that reinforce your old pain.

• Releasing survival patterns that once kept you safe but now keep you stuck.

• Letting go of shame that was never yours to carry.

And let me be clear — this is not about forgetting the past or pretending it didn’t happen.
It’s about no longer letting it define your direction.

The Lingering Pull of Trauma

Trauma memories are sticky. They linger. They replay. They embed themselves not just in our minds, but in our bodies, our choices, our relationships. We can’t just snap our fingers and walk away. Healing is not about forcing change — it’s about creating safety, making conscious decisions, and building trust with ourselves again.

Sometimes, we burn the ships slowly — a piece at a time. Sometimes we look back a few more times before we’re ready to stop. That’s okay. That’s human.

But when the moment comes — that quiet, brave decision to stop living from a place of fear and start moving from a place of possibility — that’s when healing begins to take root.

You Don’t Have to Do It Alone

If you’re standing at the edge of your old story — ship behind you, unfamiliar shore ahead — know this:

You are allowed to move forward.
You are allowed to grow beyond what happened to you.
And you do not have to make this journey alone.

Together, we can acknowledge the past, honour the story, and choose something new.
One step at a time.

Let’s burn the ships — and not look back.