Trauma in Our Body
Have you ever experienced a smell, sight, sound, touch, or taste that reminds you of something from the past? One example would be the smell of a specific recipe that reminds you of your grandma and the wonderful memories you have with her. The smell brings about warm emotions and the love you have for her.
The same is true of memories that don’t hold such wonderful feelings. We call these triggers - when you experience something in the present that pulls you back to the past. Usually if a trigger is occurring, there has been an event(s) that left a lasting impact. We would label these events trauma.
A traumatic event is any event experienced as a threat to one’s safety. These threats bring about our subconscious defense responses and move us into a state of fight, flight or freeze.
When we experience these threats, they often are not coming about from a logical perspective, but rather our body is responding from a subconscious level and is signaling us that we are in danger and we need to protect ourselves. When we go into this state, the thinking part of our brain - the frontal cortex - switches off, making it difficult to think logically. Our bodies are responding to potential threats before we have the chance to think about responding in such a way to keep us safe.
When we experience traumatic event(s), our body can get stuck in a state of fight/flight/freeze, leaving us constantly responding to perceived “threats”. Often, this starts to come out through our relationships: perceiving that our significant other will hurt us so we hurt them first, struggling to trust friends/family/significant other with vulnerable emotions, or struggles with intimacy.
The wisdom of our bodies is so incredible AND it’s imperative that we are able to acknowledge the impact of trauma(s) that have occurred in our lives. Without acknowledgment, our bodies never receive rest and leave us feeling anxious, experiencing panic attacks, and in a constant state of preparing. This comes in the way of us living in the present day and therefore missing out on the present experiences with those around us.
While it can be scary to acknowledge such painful experiences, the hope and peace that comes from allowing your body and mind to heal is worth the investment into yourself.
Are you ready to give yourself a chance?