The Sentinel-Intelligence

The Sentinel-Intelligence

Share this post

The Sentinel-Intelligence
The Sentinel-Intelligence
Can We Ever Learn to Trust Again?

Can We Ever Learn to Trust Again?

On moral injury.

Jessica's avatar
Jessica
Oct 05, 2024
∙ Paid
132

Share this post

The Sentinel-Intelligence
The Sentinel-Intelligence
Can We Ever Learn to Trust Again?
45
20
Share
Mindmo

There’s a question floating around. It’s been incubating for a while.

Even if we ended the pandemic for real, stopped the genocide, and came up with a miracle solution for the climate crisis, would we ever be the same? Would we ever look at people the way we used to?

Would we enjoy their company?

Would we trust them?

For many of us, the answer is no. We’ll never look at our friends and families the same way. We’ll never pass a stranger without tensing up. We’ll never relax over a cup of coffee with old acquaintances. They decided to put their own superficial wants over our health and safety, insisting they were justified every time. They didn’t just do it once. They did it to us over and over again.

For some of us, it’s always been like this.

There’s a name for that feeling.

The term moral injury emerged from studies on trauma, specifically in veterans. In 1994, Jonathan Shay originally defined it as the "betrayal of what's right, by a person who holds legitimate authority in a high-st…

This post is for paid subscribers

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Jessica Wildfire
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share