Trauma and Stress Related Therapy
Do you find yourself feeling stuck in the past, revisiting old memories, and struggling to stay present in the moment? Maybe you have been experiencing an overwhelming amount of emotion and don't know where it is coming from. Old emotions often times find their way back to the surface if they have gone unresolved for some time.
You may have thoughts like "why am I still thinking about this, it happen so long ago"? "I thought I got over that, why does it still bother me"? "Am I ever going to be able to move on from that"? Maybe there are no memories but you feel a deep sense that something bad happened in the past.
What Is Trauma?
Trauma is an event that overwhelms the mind and body, shifting the way we think and recall memories. Traumatic experiences can leave people trapped in a state of fear and helplessness. It can be an experience where nothing you do can stop what's happening to you and leaves you feeling unsafe in your body.
You may be familiar with the terms Fight, Flight, and Freeze which are common symptoms of trauma that leave people feeling like they are in a constant state of survival mode. There are many different experiences that can be identified as traumatic events such as:
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Physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
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Bullying.
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Community violence.
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Experiencing or witnessing domestic violence.
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Natural Disasters.
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Serious accidents.
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Separation from a parent.
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Abandonment and neglect.
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Poverty.
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Toxic relationships and divorce.
The reality of it is, the mind and the body can only block things out for so long. If left unresolved, it's not uncommon for people to start re-enacting trauma in their present lives. Leading to self-sabotaging behaviors, dysfunctional relationships, hiding from the world, finding yourself in trouble, or numbing the pain with drugs or alcohol.