Table of Contents
Can I heal trauma on my own?
Recovering from trauma takes time, and everyone heals at their own pace. But if months have passed and your symptoms aren’t letting up, you may need professional help from a trauma expert. Seek help for trauma if you’re: Having trouble functioning at home or work. Not everyone who survives a traumatic event develops a mental health problem. The feelings that you’re feeling after going through a trauma are normal, and any human being would experience them in your shoes. Sometimes, people are able to heal from trauma without the support of professional treatment. How does your brain cope with trauma? According to McLaughlin, if the brain registers an overwhelming trauma, then it can essentially block that memory in a process called dissociation — or detachment from reality. The brain will attempt to protect itself, she added. Trauma often manifests physically as well as emotionally. Some common physical signs of trauma include paleness, lethargy, fatigue, poor concentration and a racing heartbeat. The victim may have anxiety or panic attacks and be unable to cope in certain circumstances. Memories of trauma are like normal memories in these respects, but they have important characteristics that make them much different from normal, everyday memories. However, after being traumatized certain central events may be remembered forever and this is an adaptive outcome. Life after trauma Another person may “bottle it in,” hold in their feelings until the stress comes out in other forms, such as irritability, outbursts of anger, isolation, changes in personality/relationships, and/or addictions to self-medicate the emotional and physical pain.
Can you heal trauma without therapy?
Therapy is one way, but not the only way to heal from trauma as there are a variety of ways to heal such as: relationships and connection, re-connecting to our culture and ancestral customs, having a practice such as yoga and/or meditation, expression such as art, dance, and writing, and more. Trauma-Focused Therapy is a specific approach to therapy that recognizes and emphasizes understanding how the traumatic experience impacts a child’s mental, behavioral, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) Trauma-focused CBT uses a range of psychological techniques to help you come to terms with the traumatic event. For example, your therapist may ask you to face your traumatic memories by describing aspects of your experience in detail. Trauma disorders are mental health conditions that are caused by a traumatic experience. Trauma is subjective, but common examples that may trigger a disorder include abuse, neglect, witnessing violence, losing a loved one, or being in a natural disaster.
Does trauma ever fully heal?
There are degrees of trauma. It can be emotional, mental, physical or sexual. It can occur once, or repeatedly. However, it is possible to fully recover from any traumatic experience or event; it may take a long time, but in the end, living free from the symptoms of trauma is worth every step of the journey. Initial reactions to trauma can include exhaustion, confusion, sadness, anxiety, agitation, numbness, dissociation, confusion, physical arousal, and blunted affect. Most responses are normal in that they affect most survivors and are socially acceptable, psychologically effective, and self-limited. Intrusive memories Recurrent, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event. Reliving the traumatic event as if it were happening again (flashbacks) Upsetting dreams or nightmares about the traumatic event. Severe emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of the traumatic event. Ever since people’s responses to overwhelming experiences have been systematically explored, researchers have noted that a trauma is stored in somatic memory and expressed as changes in the biological stress response. Trauma bonds are bonds that commonly form as a result of abusive relationships. They are the surface-level feelings of attachment and intimacy that can result from an abusive cycle. In a trauma bond, partners think they have true love or connection even though the relationship is harmful. When a trauma occurs, people enter into a fight, flight, or freeze state, which can result in the prefrontal cortex shutting down.
Why is it so hard to heal from trauma?
Trauma is difficult to heal from. It’s meant to be. Trauma is the way that our brains and bodies adapt to an experience or environment of life-threatening powerlessness: to situations of overwhelm that are extremely dangerous to our survival. If our brains and bodies don’t take that seriously, we won’t stay alive. Smiling when discussing trauma is a way to minimize the traumatic experience. It communicates the notion that what happened “wasn’t so bad.” This is a common strategy that trauma survivors use in an attempt to maintain a connection to caretakers who were their perpetrators. Emotional Trauma Symptoms Psychological Concerns: Anxiety and panic attacks, fear, anger, irritability, obsessions and compulsions, shock and disbelief, emotional numbing and detachment, depression, shame and guilt (especially if the person dealing with the trauma survived while others didn’t) Healthcare organizations, nurses and other medical staff need to know the six principles of trauma-informed care: safety; trustworthiness and transparency; peer support; collaboration and mutuality; empowerment, voice and choice; and cultural issues. The three R’s – Reaching the traumatised brain. Dr Bruce Perry a pioneering neuroscientist in the field of trauma has shown us to help a vulnerable child to learn, think and reflect, we need to intervene in a simple sequence. We often will feel sad and cry after a highly traumatic event. The crying can be a way for the nervous system to come down from the fight-or-flight response, since crying is associated with the parasympathetic nervous system which calms the mind and body.
How long can trauma take to heal?
People affected by trauma tend to feel unsafe in their bodies and in their relationships with others. Regaining a sense of safety may take days to weeks with acutely traumatized individuals or months to years with individuals who have experienced ongoing/chronic abuse. Recovering from trauma takes time, and everyone heals at their own pace. But if months have passed and your symptoms aren’t letting up, you may need professional help from a trauma expert. Seek help for trauma if you’re: Having trouble functioning at home or work. Trauma happens to everyone. It can be physical, mental, or emotional. Many do not realize they have had a traumatic experience because most believe “a trauma” is only something dramatic or changes their world entirely. Initial reactions to trauma can include exhaustion, confusion, sadness, anxiety, agitation, numbness, dissociation, confusion, physical arousal, and blunted affect. Most responses are normal in that they affect most survivors and are socially acceptable, psychologically effective, and self-limited. Trauma disorders are mental health conditions that are caused by a traumatic experience. Trauma is subjective, but common examples that may trigger a disorder include abuse, neglect, witnessing violence, losing a loved one, or being in a natural disaster. No, but with effective evidence-based treatment, symptoms can be managed well and can remain dormant for years, even decades. But because the trauma that evokes the symptoms will never go away, there is a possibility for those symptoms to be “triggered” again in the future.
What happens if trauma is not healed?
Neglected past trauma can have a large effect on your future health. The psychological and physical responses it triggers can make you susceptible to severe health conditions including stroke, heart attack, weight problems, diabetes, and cancer, according to a Harvard Medical School research study. People who have survived trauma often continue to live normal lives, but the effects of trauma may impact mood, motivation and relationships. It’s normal to experience some changes after a distressing and uncontrollable event, and it’s important to know when to seek supportive trauma treatment. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event. Most people who go through traumatic events may have temporary difficulty adjusting and coping, but with time and good self-care, they usually get better. Cognitive Signs of Unhealed Trauma You may experience nightmares or flashbacks that take you back to the traumatic event. Furthermore, you may struggle with mood swings, as well as disorientation and confusion, which can make it challenging to perform daily tasks.