Does everyone have trauma?
Everyone may experience different traumas in their life but how these then affect individuals can be very different. Were you ever shouted at by a parent or teacher? Did someone say something hurtful to you? Were your emotions unvalidated? There are many things that can be traumatising, but these things are not always majorly dramatic. Trauma refers to a deeply distressing or disturbing experience, a multitude of things can be just this:
- Physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect (this includes not being shown how to navigate big emotions or your emotions being shut down, or your physical needs not being met in the way you needed)
- Natural disasters, war or combat experiences
- Violent attacks
- Grief (loss of a loved one or moving house for example)
- Medical problems or severe health diagnosis
- Witnessing distressing events
How does one respond?
For some people trauma can leave them in a catatonic state. Others it may come back to haunt them at another turn in their life. Traumatic experiences can alter the brain’s structure and function. This is found in areas of the brain that are involved in threat detection, memory processing and regulation of emotions. You may yourself or know someone that has very little memories of their childhood. You/they might jump at the slightest noise, these can be the lasting symptoms of trauma. This traumatic experience causing a heightened stress response to future perceived threats.
Some people may develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD or Complex-PTSD). PTSD can bring on a multitude of symptoms:
- Flashbacks
- Nightmares
- heightened arousal
- avoidance of reminders of the trauma (certain places, sounds, smells or experiences)
- depression
- anxiety
- dissociation
- guilt, anger, or other emotional reactions.
Behavioural changes can occur in some:
- increased irritability
- outbursts of anger
- self-harm or sabotage
- substance abuse (drugs, alcohol, food, exercise)
- sleep disturbances.
Not everyone develops a physical or mental problem from trauma, some display resilience whereas others may develop physical issues: Chronic health issues, including:
- arthritis
- cancer
- fibromyalgia
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Auto-immune diseases
- Chronic pain
- Non-epileptic seizures
- Skin problems (eczema or psoriasis)
As mentioned previously trauma can alter the brain’s structure and function. This brain damage is seen more in those that experienced trauma at a young age. Trauma experienced in childhood can have developmental implications compared to that experienced in later life. The first 2 years of life are crucial in brain development. If a baby experiences neglect this can affect the way the person later processes information. Thus, increasing the likely hood for attentional, emotional, cognitive, and behavioural disorders.
What can unresolved trauma cause?
Have you ever thought about the way you handle your relationships, daily routines, decision-making, and daily insignificant interactions? These can be affected by your trauma. One of the most profound effects of trauma is a compromised sense of safety. Things that would be perceived as harmless can become a threat to those with a heightened state of alertness. Seemingly simple things like shopping or attending a social gathering could cause masses of anxiety.
Trust can be affected by trauma. Then causing issues developing relationships. Individuals may see themselves as “damaged” or “broken” affecting self-esteem, confidence, and the way they present themselves. Other issues can be heightened emotional responses, reacting overly emotional to something relatively normal to others. Feeling detached from themselves or environment (dissociation – check out my blog on this). Flashbacks or intrusive thoughts, difficulty concentrating or remaining focused, constantly looking out for signs of danger, pessimism. There are so many issues that trauma can cause, but what can you do about it?
What can you do?
You can now see how trauma can affect one’s life in many ways but what can you do about it? Get some help, asking for help can be hard but if it is affecting your daily life, your family, then what have you got to loose? With the help of therapy and coping strategies, many trauma survivors find ways to heal and lead fulfilling lives. Emogic can offer you such help. We find the root cause of your trauma and facilitate the release of this traumatic emotion or energy within your mind and body. Emogic does this using kinesiology and some talk therapy whilst offering you coping strategies whilst you undergo this work on yourself. Its not easy but with our empathetic therapists who have undergone their own trauma release therapy you will be guided and supported through the process.
If you would like to get in touch to see if Emogic is for you, we offer a free consultation. For your first session we ask only a £10 deposit and no need to pay anymore until after the session and you feel like you have gained from it. We guarantee you will. Drop in a message to Lilli and go from there.
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