When we think of trauma, or PTSD, we tend to think about the most dramatic examples, born of war or abuse. However, trauma is not always loud. Unresolved emotional wounds can just as easily come from neglect, bullying, toxic relationships, a sudden loss, as well as more “everyday” incidents like a car accident. If you find yourself overreacting to small triggers, avoiding certain memories, or struggling with anxiety or irritability, unseen trauma may be affecting you. Here are a few ways you can manage it.
Flashbacks Are Not Always Literal
One important aspect of trauma to recognize is that it doesn’t always happen like in the movies. You may not find yourself transported back to a bad experience from your past, but rather, might feel surges of emotions that you have difficulty explaining, such as feeling overly panicked by relatively light criticism, shutting down during conflicts, or having emotional outbursts over small matters. These are what are commonly called emotional flashbacks and are often deeply tied to psychological triggers. Performing mindfulness exercises can help you become more aware of your triggers, what sets them off, and how your body tends to react. These are not personality flaws for you to blame yourself over, but survival mechanisms that have gone a little out of control. Gaining awareness of them can help you break the cycle of falling into them unconsciously.
Taking A Therapeutic Approach
Trauma can be addressed through therapy. Talk therapy allows people to explore the topics of their trauma in a safe and supportive environment, but it isn’t the only approach, either. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (or EMDR therapy) uses an approach of stimulation, such as eye movements or tapping, to help the brain “reprocess” painful memories so they no longer trigger overwhelming emotional responses. It’s not a means of removing traumatic memories from the mind, but rather changing how the mind approaches them, allowing you to process them more healthily in a way that feels safe. This, in turn, can help diminish or entirely remove your emotional responses to psychological triggers as mentioned above.
Developing Healthier Coping Mechanisms
Just as we can be influenced by emotional flashbacks without noticing, we can also engage in coping mechanisms without fully understanding what they are. Many coping mechanisms are unhealthy, from overeating to substance abuse, and even self-isolation or overworking. These are our attempts to manage our emotional wounds, but often they can lead to problems of their own, such as addiction. It’s important to understand not just your coping mechanisms but what it is that you’re trying to cope with. A good approach to addiction treatment and recovery isn’t just about treating the dependence itself, but the underlying psychological mechanisms, so dual diagnosis is often the best way forward.
Understanding and recognizing the impact trauma has on your life can be an important first step to getting more in control of your emotions and your thoughts. Try some of the tips above to see if they make a meaningful difference.
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