The Existential Soliton Theory: Conceptualizing Relational Trauma

Translated from the original

Abstract

The Existential Soliton Theory offers a new framework for conceptualizing relational trauma. Drawing on nonlinear wave dynamics, it describes how emotionally charged experiences can persist in stable, self-reinforcing configurations - existential solitons - that maintain their shape across time and relationships. These solitons are triggered by surprise and sustained through narrative–affective loops that preserve both meaning and tension. Integrating phenomenology, affective neuroscience, and existential psychotherapy, the theory bridges the geometry of waves with the recurrence of emotion. It provides clinicians with a dynamic metaphor for understanding why certain emotional patterns resist change despite therapeutic insight. Recognizing soliton-like dynamics in therapy can help practitioners facilitate re-contextualization rather than repetition, offering a fresh approach to long-standing relational injuries. This conceptualization invites therapists to view recurrent emotional patterns not as pathology to be eradicated, but as forms to be observed, understood, and ultimately integrated.

Publisher's Note
This article is an authorized Polish translation of: Draczyńska, D., & Nowakowska, A. (2025). The Existential Soliton Theory: Conceptualizing Relational Trauma. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 56, 221–226. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10879-025-09702-9. The original article was published by Springer Nature under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License. The Polish translation was prepared by the original authors and is published as a separate scholarly publication with its own DOI.