Trauma can impact every part of your life, from your relationships and career to how you perceive yourself. In this post, we'll explore how trauma might affect daily life by looking at some common examples.
Huge Life Changes After Trauma
You might feel isolated or disconnected from family, friends, and other loved ones.
You might feel like no one understands what you are going through, which can make you feel alone in your struggle.
When your world has been turned upside down by trauma, it's common for survivors to question who they really are, and whether the world is a safe place to exist in.
Trauma survivors often have a hard time trusting others because of their experiences; this dramatically affects the way they interact with people who aren't being abusive towards them (such as loved ones).
Trauma Can Change Your Relationships
Trauma can affect your relationships. If you’ve experienced trauma, it can impact the people around you and how you relate to them.
Relationships are one of the most important parts of our lives. They are a source of fulfillment and happiness, as well as a common cause of our struggles and suffering. When dealing with a traumatic event, it is common to feel isolated or like your relationships aren’t working anymore.
This is because trauma affects our brains differently than other experiences do. It can make us feel like we don’t belong in society or that no one understands what we are going through—and that includes our loved ones! This makes it hard for people who have been traumatized to connect with others in healthy ways unless they seek help from someone who knows about PTSD symptoms (like a therapist).
Healing from trauma takes time and work.
Trauma is a Journey.
The process of healing from trauma can be difficult and frustrating. You may experience setbacks, or it might seem like you’re not making any progress at all. That’s ok- this is all part of the process.
Healing takes time. It may be tempting to think that what you went through was just a one-time event and that if you can just get through it, everything will go back to normal again. But trauma often leaves lasting repercussions on your body and mind. These scars need time and care to heal before they fade away.
Fear and anxiety can become constant companions.
If you've experienced a traumatic event, fear and anxiety can become constant companions. Anxiety is a normal response to trauma: our bodies have evolved to react strongly when we perceive danger, so once your brain has registered that something bad happened, you may find yourself keeping tabs on every single thing that happens around you as if it could happen again at any moment.
Symptoms of trauma related PTSD.
Anxiety can also be a symptom of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). People with PTSD often have trouble with the following:
They might have trouble sleeping or concentrating.
They might startle easily or be jarred by loud noises.
They may avoid certain places where their trauma unfolded.
They might feel irritable or out of control.
They may experience flashbacks while awake.
These are all symptoms of this condition that vary from person to person but should always be taken seriously. If these symptoms persist for three months after experiencing trauma, then it’s possible that someone has developed PTSD and should seek professional help immediately.
Trauma can make it hard to stay in the present.
You may find that you're having a hard time staying in the present. You might be constantly thinking about something that happened in the past or imagining what could happen in the future. You might even space out and lose track of where you are or what you're doing. Dissociation is an extremely common symptom of trauma.
Trying to be present with others can also be hard because trauma makes it difficult to interact with other people without being self-conscious or being exposed to trauma triggers.
Mindfulness is one of the most effective strategies for learning to get grounded again and build your capacity to stay present.
Sensory triggers have a big impact on survivors.
Sensory triggers have a big impact on survivors. They can be anything from sounds, sights, smells or even physical sensations that cause a person to feel like they are reliving the trauma.
For example, if you were abused as a child and your abuser wore cologne that was nauseating. Every time you smell cologne (or even something similar) it will trigger negative feelings in your body. This can be very upsetting for many people but especially for those who have experienced trauma and are still struggling with PTSD symptoms years after their experience ended. Therapy can help people learn to manage sensory triggers.
You may feel like you live your life in cycles of triggers, memories, and attempts to bury the memories deep again.
When trauma is left untreated, it can manifest as a cycle of triggers, memories and attempts to bury the memories again. This is true whether you are actively trying to avoid thinking about the trauma or not. The cycle might look like this:
Triggers lead to uncomfortable emotions such as anger, sadness, guilt and shame.
Uncomfortable emotions trigger avoidance behaviors that make you feel safe again (like binge-watching your favorite show).
Over time these coping mechanisms increase in frequency until they become entrenched patterns in your daily life—for example, avoiding any situation that reminds you of the original trauma because it causes unpleasant emotions.
Eventually these strategies become ineffective at protecting against painful thoughts and feelings which leads to the cycle starting over.
The effects of trauma on a person's life can be extremely complicated but it is possible to heal.
The healing process is not linear. It's a journey, with many ups and downs. The main thing to remember is that you CAN heal and you are NOT alone in this process.
The effects of trauma on a person's life can be extremely complicated but it is possible to heal if they are willing to work on it and seek support from friends, family members or professional counselors.
Closing thoughts on trauma recovery.
It’s important to remember that trauma is a very complex issue. It can affect every aspect of your life and it may not be easy to recover from. But if you work hard at it, you can heal from trauma and live a happy life free of fear and anxiety.
Other Mental Health Services Available at Strive On Counseling
As Asheville therapists, we understand that every individual has a unique set of mental health needs. Therefore, we offer many services and forms of therapy. More specifically, our services include individual counseling, anxiety treatment, EMDR trauma therapy, therapy for men’s issues, mindfulness, Buddhist counseling, cognitive behavioral therapy, teletherapy / online therapy. Some other resources we offer include guided meditations, supplements, a list of books and other useful resources, and online courses. If you would like more information about any of these services, please reach out today, and start doing therapy in North Carolina!