Mindfulness can be a valuable tool for trauma survivors, as it can help them heal from past experiences. When choosing a space or therapist’s office for mindfulness practice, it is essential to choose a safe and supportive environment that is accessible, inclusive, and welcoming. Many vulnerable and marginalized groups are more likely to experience trauma. A trauma-informed approach to mindfulness uses techniques like grounding and anchoring, which use the five senses to connect to the present.
Mental health treatment studies have shown that mindfulness can help avoid triggers and overwhelm, while strengthening a person’s ability to face painful experiences. Mindfulness can increase self-compassion and awareness, helping trauma survivors regulate their emotions. Research has shown that individuals who participated in mindfulness-based interventions demonstrated significantly lower levels of PTSD.
Mental health can also help traumatized individuals remain grounded and focused on the present moment, which may help in processing intrusive thoughts. Mindfulness can help people train themselves to break free from a vicious cycle of negative thinking, often a cornerstone of trauma. Meditation, particularly mindfulness meditation, can relieve painful symptoms of trauma and alter brain structure.
In conclusion, mindfulness can be a powerful tool for trauma survivors to heal from past experiences. It is essential to choose a safe and supportive environment, practice mindfulness, and seek the help of a therapist when needed.
📹 How mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains | Richard J. Davidson | TEDxSanFrancisco
“Why is it that some people are more vulnerable to life’s slings and arrows and others more resilient?” In this eye-opening talk,Ā …
How does meditation heal trauma?
Studies suggest that meditation can reduce symptoms of PTSD, especially in war veterans, by calming the sympathetic nervous system. However, the first time meditation was attempted, painful flashbacks of rape flooded the mind, turning quiet meditation sessions into nightmares. Despite this, the author was determined to continue practicing meditation. Trauma can make meditation difficult initially, but there are steps to experience its benefits and aid in recovery. If struggling with meditation due to PTSD, consider the following suggestions:
- Practice deep breathing exercises to reduce stress hormones and calm the sympathetic nervous system.
- Engage in deep breathing exercises to reduce anxiety and improve focus.
- Engage in mindfulness meditation to reduce stress and improve focus.
How does mindfulness help healing?
Mindfulness is a practice that enhances our awareness of our thoughts, emotions, and sensations, allowing us to have a more accurate perception of our experiences and feel more grounded and stable. Recognizing and honoring anxious feelings can guide us in our healing journey. Practiced mindfulness also fosters greater self-empathy, as it involves non-judgmental observation without blaming ourselves. This allows us to learn more about our genuine intentions, practice objective observations, and accept ourselves.
This helps us make more conscious choices and balanced states throughout our recovery. Jon Kabat-Zinn emphasizes that the real meditation practice never comes to an end, but rather, it’s our life and how we carry ourselves in each moment. Mindfulness can be practiced in various situations, and yoga is a great way to begin incorporating it into our daily lives.
How does mindfulness help recovery?
Mindfulness is a powerful tool in addiction recovery, promoting emotional resilience and self-awareness. It helps individuals manage their emotions, especially in mental health conditions like anxiety disorders. This emotional grounding leads to better decision-making and a more positive outlook. Physically, mindfulness can be beneficial in drug addiction rehab, alleviating symptoms and promoting overall well-being. Techniques like mindfulness-based stress reduction address mental health and enhance physical health, making them invaluable in recovery.
Physical activities like yoga and mindfulness can further enhance physical well-being, offering a holistic approach to long-term rehab. This synergy between mind and body creates a robust defense against relapse.
How does mindfulness help trauma?
Mindfulness can help traumatized individuals remain grounded and focused on the present moment, which can help process intrusive memories of past traumas and mitigate emotional numbing symptoms. Exposure to traumatic life events is associated with increased risk of PTSD, suicidal ideation, alcohol use disorder, and decreased quality of life. Mindfulness, which involves attending to the present moment, can help cope with traumatic events by increasing acceptance of trauma-related experiences and decreasing negative affect and avoidance of trauma reminders. This study evaluated whether mindfulness mediates the association between lifetime traumas and mental health.
How does mindfulness reduce suffering?
Mindfulness is a technique that facilitates the transformation of suffering by modifying the manner in which the mind processes information.
How does mindfulness improve emotional health?
Mindfulness meditation has been linked to changes in brain regions involved in memory, learning, and emotion, as well as reduced anxiety and hostility among urban youth. It also encourages attention to thoughts, actions, and the body, helping people achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Mindful eating involves eating when hungry, focusing on each bite, enjoying food more, and stopping when full.
Finding time for mindfulness in our culture can be challenging due to our focus on quick and easy tasks. However, being more mindful is within anyone’s reach, as it can be practiced throughout the day, even while answering emails, sitting in traffic, or waiting in line. By becoming more aware of your breath, feet, fingers, and surroundings, you can practice mindfulness and improve your overall well-being.
What are the 3 A’s of mindfulness?
The three pillars of mindfulness, which are awareness, acceptance, and attunement, work in conjunction to cultivate a more profound and compassionate connection with oneself and the surrounding environment. This is achieved by focusing on the observation of thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations in the present moment.
How to release trauma in the body?
Trauma can be trapped in the body due to various factors, including human nature, which can lead to feelings of anxiety and depression. To release trauma, it is essential to acknowledge your feelings and practice techniques such as yoga, shadow work exercises, stillness, meditation, self-care, journaling, and massage. Therapy can also be helpful in releasing trauma, but it is crucial to understand the process and the duration of recovery.
Heidi Moawad, MD, a neurologist with over 20 years of experience, offers tips on how to release trauma, including focusing on mental health disorders, behavioral health issues, neurological disease, migraines, pain, stroke, cognitive impairment, and multiple sclerosis. She provides additional resources and infographics to help individuals understand the process of releasing trauma and the benefits of therapy. Additionally, Moawad shares her personal experiences and insights on seeking help when needed.
What are the 7 main benefits of mindful meditation?
Mindfulness is a psychological state of awareness that has been promoted by many as a potential benefit for clients and therapists. It is believed to improve self-control, objectivity, affect tolerance, flexibility, equanimity, concentration, mental clarity, emotional intelligence, and the ability to relate to others with kindness, acceptance, and compassion. However, the effectiveness of mindfulness is not as advertised.
Mindfulness is defined as moment-to-moment awareness of one’s experience without judgment, and while it may be promoted by practices like meditation, it is not synonymous with these activities. The article provides an overview of research on mindfulness and its implications for practice, research, and training.
Does mindfulness suppress emotions?
Mindfulness is a non-judgmental approach that emphasizes the awareness and acceptance of all emotional experiences, regardless of their perceived valence, intensity, or utility. It has been integrated into cognitive behavioral therapy approaches and has shown beneficial effects. Emotion suppression, which involves trying to avoid or escape from experiencing and being aware of one’s own emotions, has been identified as a potentially maladaptive strategy. Both strategies can decrease affective responses to emotional stimuli but provide regulation through different top-down modulation systems.
This study aimed to elucidate the different neural systems underlying emotion regulation via mindfulness and emotion suppression approaches. Twenty-one healthy participants used both strategies in response to emotional visual stimuli while functional magnetic resonance imaging was conducted. Both strategies attenuated amygdala responses to emotional triggers, but the pathways to regulation differed across the two.
A mindful approach appears to regulate amygdala functioning via functional connectivity from the medial prefrontal cortex, while suppression uses connectivity with other regions, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Thus, the two types of emotion regulation recruit different top-down modulation processes localized at prefrontal areas.
Emotion regulation is a fundamental function for human beings to adapt to the environment. There are several emotion regulation strategies, including emotion suppression, reappraisal, distraction, and detachment. Recently, mindfulness has received focus as an effective emotion regulation strategy. It emphasizes observing a wide range of stimuli, describing observed phenomena, engaging fully in current activities with undivided attention, and accepting, allowing, or being nonjudgmental or nonevaluative about an experience in the present moment.
These core components of mindfulness have been introduced to various cognitive behavioral therapy approaches, such as Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
What are 3 psychological benefits of mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a practice that focuses on focusing on the present moment without judgment, aiming to reduce stress, improve mental and physical health, and increase overall happiness. In today’s busy world, it’s easy to lose connection with the present moment, missing out on activities and feelings. Mindfulness is a key element in stress reduction and overall happiness, as it helps individuals focus on the present moment without judgment.
It’s essential to recognize and accept the present moment, as it can help us feel well-rested and appreciate the present moment without judgment. This practice is now being scientifically examined and is a key element in enhancing overall well-being.
📹 Healing the Nervous System From Trauma: Somatic Experiencing
I review the book Moving Beyond Trauma by Ilene Smith, which teaches about using somatic experiencing to heal the nervousĀ …
Emdr is a very good tool in my experience, to treat anxiety and process stuck emotions. It really helped me and releived me from an overstressed nervous system.. what also really helped was, walking in nature, magnesium supplements, meditation, yoga, writing, healthy foods (fish/vegetables/muts/seeds/fruits/chicken/beans/avocado/dark chocolat), 8 hours sleep a day/structure. Someone to talk to. Praying. Writing down 3 things your grateful for, every day🌻wishing You welll if you’re going trough anxiety, and/or depression🙏🏻Keep up the faith.
My jaw is on the floor. I learned more in 12 minutes than I have the past 10 years from doctors. This all makes so much sense now. I want to heal. My stress levels are so high and my health is deteriorating. Fibro, chronic fatigue, anxiety, depression, ADHD, CPTSD, stomach issues … as I age, I develop more problems. I have to mourn my entire 30s. This is giving me hope. Thank you so much!!!!!
(Written by River) I have survived my fathers murder being raised by him as a sociopath vietnam veteran full of violence torture and rage, been chronically ill for 8 years,survived a miraculous car accident 2 weeks before my dads murder that i hadn’t seen in 10 years. likea life for a life deal. been through 30 years of the cycle of abuse and didn’t even realize until i got very sick to where i couldn’t care for myself. been homeless, tortured, abused in every way, survived life threatening illness, a fall off a mountain, overdoses from trying to numb the pain of my life while upholding everyone around me emotionally and loving everyone deeply but myself. and somehow i’m still in here. i’m still breathing, still wanting to learn about myself, still wanting to be a light on this earth, and wanting people to feel comfort and worth.i pray for us all and i wish everyone nothing but the best and I LOVE YOU> you deserve peace i deserve peace we deserve peace. My names River and we all matter here.today I’m 33 days sober and a lifetime to follow. We can do this
Oh my god. Everything makes sense now. Everything makes so much sense, the reason why I experience these panic attacks and constant anxiety is because my body is still stuck in the trauma response. I have had 2 years of crippling anxiety and panic attacks for seemingly no reason but now I understand everything and feel so guilty for being so hard on myself. Thankyou, you have changed my whole way of thinking
YES! For once, someone understands me and that talk therapy doesn’t work successfully for everyone, especially trauma survivors. I’m on a beautiful healing journey giving voice to my inner child who had been silenced for 50+ years. There’s no single pathway to recovery. For each person it’s unique. Part of my recovery is standing firm in my healthy boundaries. #MeToo
I remember having some minor surgery years ago and at that point I had never done any kind of drug at all. I didn’t even drink small amounts of coffee or alcohol. They hit me with an intravenous dose of shrooms and I felt so good, so positive, and so thoughtful that I felt like I could’ve talked Hitler out of a wagging war.
I am slowly learning how to heal my body’s nervous system from trauma with yoga and the difference is incredible. I was constantly living in a state of fear and anxiety, any noise, any sudden movement, any strange situation, I would notice it, my heart would start beating so fast, I was diagnosed with IBS (didn’t actually have it but was just my flight response to need the toilet), I was paranoid, obsessive thoughts and I never actually truly knew what rest and relaxation felt like. I started to become suicidal and got admitted to a hospital, I ended up staying there for a very long time. After being out for a few years and doing better in myself I started to do a yoga challenge for 30 days and im here nearly three months since doing yoga everyday and the difference is insane. Sometimes you dont realise how bad the state you are living in is as this just becomes your everyday reality – its not until you enter a different mind state that you come out of the state you have been living in and yoga did that for me. I look back at only a few months ago and feel such sadness how I had lived my life like that for so long, my body constantly in stress and such tension, I feel really lucky I didnt actually get super chronically ill. we really can heal ourselves through the body.
i seriously cannot fathom the amount of help this website can bring to individuals who just need such guidance and understanding of their psychology and physiology to bring the positive changes they themselves have the potential of. i am seriously sad by seeing how a much smaller audience thinks about these problems as actual solvable issues and reach out to free resources like these to learn and live through this crazy chaotic place. I cant thank you enough, Emma. I just found your website recently and would love to learn from all the information you have already shared! Keep up the good work!
I AM SO HAPPY I CLICKED ON THIS article. as a child- i was always shamed for feeling emotions too strongly. “you’re too sensitive” while i’m trying to communicate my needs or “don’t be so giddy” as i’m literally too joyous for words. i’ve always been shamed for my physical reactions to things. in fact- i’ve been shamed for nearly everything by my mom. but it’s not her fault. it’s definetly not my fault. it’s a cycle of abuse that i’m willing to break- even if that means that my mom will think i’m crazy or that i hate her. i want to love myself, and although i love her- i love her enough to let her go rather than seek revenge. i have support. i have coping mechanisms. i have goals. i want to heal.
In Paraguay, South America, my therapist told me that curing anxiety is really simple because it is not an illness, that I just needed to take my anxiety off my mind and throw it into the garbage, then tickle myself, and pray to Jesus. 👀 So, if you complain that therapists don’t take this approach in your country, imagine how it is in third-world countries like mine. Thanks to the internet, I can access this valuable information. Thank you so much for sharing.
I “crashed” from stress, depression, exhaustion… and my therapist Rx’d an SSRI. There ya go! 5 years later I am still “crashed”. My nervous system feels that it is off line. THANK you for this information and this book. It is resonating with me and I am HOPEFUL for the first time in 5 years. Thank YOU!
After suffering with complex PTSD severely for the past six years, I found Ilene’s book. I actually wept through the entire book because I finally could stop blaming myself (a very high-achieving, goal-getting individual for 35 plus years) for losing my career, relationships, friends, family after nearly two years of debilitating anxiety, depression, suicidal ideations, isolation, inability to focus or make decision and physical shut down.
I’ve recently realized the healing power of these gentle somatic movements. Oh my goodness I’m so glad, Praise God! After years of self-help from a terrible abusive and traumatic childhood or lack of one, I thought I was doing pretty good. Then 6 years ago my fiance died suddenly and traumatically in my home. Me and my son tried to save him and it was an ordeal with the paramedics and him lying on my floor for hours. After my adult son started taking prescriptive pills not prescribed to him because of the experience and then proceeded to verbally bash me for a next couple of years for pills. It devastated me along with re-triggering the post-traumatic stress I had worked so hard to overcome and made me a nervous wreck. At one point I could barely move off my chair for almost a year along with truly wanting to no longer live for like two. Never experienced depression like this before. Luckily I’m not in that spot anymore but this time around Im a lot older and in a lot more pain from three surgeries on my neck with a whole lot less of my life to look forward to. I’ve been doing a lot of cognitive stuff, positive affirmations, meditation along with seeing a counselor weekly for about 10 months which is helped a whole lot but not fast enough. I don’t want to die alone at home. I’ve never been someone to isolate like this. The pandemic and having no family made it so much worse. I’m so glad I found this and some other articles on this topic because I don’t like who I am anymore. As a young adult I had no choice but to work on myself because I couldn’t live in my own mind and be happy.
As someone living through PTSD, I always feel that these articles advise us to return our nervous systems to normal without honoring the need for our body to emotionally express things. My PTSD only got better by releasing anger, crying, shouting, etc, first. I lived a good childhood and I’m always a calm person but after trauma, your body stored sadness, anger, general stress that has to be expressed. I think it is helpful to master the parasympathetic nervous system but not until (and this is critically important) AFTER releasing the pent up emotions. If you try to calm your nervous system before letting things out, you train yourself to store things permanently. Its really like “then they swallowed their pain” vibes and its unhealthy.
When I moved back home after a really stressful time that threw me into a depression, I was surprised at how physically exhausted I was. Once I was in a safe space again, I slept and slept and slept. It felt really good, and I felt how much my body needed rest after my mind had been through trauma. In a way, it was a signal that we were okay again and that I could just relax. All that sleep helped me end the cycle of stress. Now I’ve got lots more energy again, I’m exercising and socialising, I’m working hard and having fun. But I don’t think my mind would have been able to get here if I hadn’t given my body time to recover. It made me realise that the trauma wasn’t just in my head, it was also stored in my body.
This article came at the perfect time. Currently I’m in trauma therapy and EMDR for my PTSD. My EMDR is stuck cause of my body. So now I’ve been focusing on my nervous system and calming my body down. I’ve been in survival mode for 3 years now….this vid fits with everything I’ve been doing. I’m even gonna send this to my counselor and see if this book is good for me…which I’m pretty sure it is. EMDR is great and even talk therapy has helped me. But it all comes down to the body and that connection you have with it. Thank you for this article. It came on my feed at the perfect time.
It’s amazing and fascinating! I started this journey at 35/36 now 40 I was blind to myself- after doing tonnes of work and unraveling I had the awareness but now had to embody everything! This was and remains the hardest part as I am now going against the ingrained record the familiar! It’s so uncomfortable- but so worth it! Yoga, yoga and yoga! It gets you into your body, your breathing and helps you to become a witness and practice detachment! It’s practice- there is so much resistance but it’s exciting! Change is possible ā¤ļø Sending so much love to you all! Get to know you, how you feel, your emotions and the way in which your body responds- we are not our trauma! Let’s put these heavy bags down 😍😘
Great vid and she is lovely, nice calm voice and doesn’t talk to fast. At the end she describes an awareness exercise. After 6 months of practicing awareness myself (Via Eckart Tolle) I have to say it has helped me in more ways than I can ever put into words. And through this awareness I’m able to stop the negative thoughts that caused so much suffering.
This article was spot on for me, after leaving an abusive relationship with my kids, I feel physically tense, sore and generally not that well. My body is definitely trying to tell me something, I’ve just not been listening! We need to take it slow, be kind to ourselves and not expect a miracle once we have been through traumatic experiences. thank you!
One thing we must always remember is that healing takes time Never let anyone say to you that you can be healed in a day or two Our body is a gift of nature and it is alright if our body takes time to heal Always remember that words make a difference Saying a few good and encouraging words to anyone who is suffering makes a lot of difference Remember that mother nature will heal you All you have to do is to have some patience!
There comes a point in Life where you have to come to the understanding that suffering is a part of Life and we must find peace inside ourselves that everyone at some point in Life will deal with some sort of what is called ‘trauma experience’ which in spiritual scriptions is described as suffering. The western part of the world uses a lot of labels which actually keeps people stuck in a victim mindset which keeps the body in resistance; itĀ“s the resistance of acceptance of Life which creates anxiety. So it is important to use these type of information as tools for therapy growth and healing but to detach however from the labels used for trauma or else you will be constantly dependent through Life when another suffering experience occurs. Life goes through changes and we can grow from these patterns by creating new ones but what is sure is no one leaves this Life without experiencing suffering. Once you look at Life from a bigger picture by accepting changes in Life and that the suffering passes by as much as joy passes by…you will create peace in your state of mind. This is a great therapy tool explained for healing from old patterns and break from the victim mindset.
This is literally everything I’ve experienced, down to the stomach issuesā as a kid, I thought stomach pains were normal! I took a few years away from everything (it was not easy) to “rebuild” and focus on self-love. It’s helped so much! āŗļø🧡 I’ve been looking for a comprehensive book or article for years now. Thank you for this!! 🙏🏽
I really enjoy your calm, encouraging advice. I love how you present anxiety and depression as challenges that can be overcome. Then offer the steps on how to manage and lessen anxiety and sadness. I really appreciate you and Therapy in a Nutshell. Thanks for your willingness to help all people and for making the world a better place by doing so. God bless you and prayers for you and your beautiful family!🙏💙🙏
This is very true. Traditional therapy just keeps that negative vibration going. Retraining your body to Distinguish between excitement in danger have to help me. When a good sensation occurs inside of me I say to myself this is a good sensation. This is a positive sensation. This is a pleasurable sensation. When negative sensations or anxiety comes up in me, I allow it. I don’t fight it allow myself to feel it but I don’t attach a story to it. I just observe it and allow it. I also meditate daily. Focusing on regulating my breathing. Emptying my mind. I find it resets everything.
I can completely relate to this. I went through some very traumatic experiences and the physiological response is the hardest to address and correct. You could give your mind tools and exercises to attempt to intervene with traumatic experiences but the physiological response is way different. My body literally felt like I had just come back from war. It’s so horrible. Working with the nervous system is key.
Hi Emma, thank you for explaining this so well. I am stuck in grief over the loss of my 23 year old son from cancer. He was diagnosed at age 18 and passed away 5 years later. I have tried everything and nothing works, but listening to you explain the whole body system…..I will try this. Even in the article I felt it all made sense when talk therapy does not work for some people. Thanks again from Vancouver, Canada
What can I do about extreme sosial anxiety that makes my neck and head to TOTALLY freezi, and as soon as I look at somebody, or I’m in a room full of people in a waiting room for example, I get multiple lightning shocks like a wawe that goes from my head, throat into my stomach and legs, and the feeling in my brain is just traumatic experience. I have tried everything…! My body act like this even when I know someone is just sitting behind me.. Have you ever heard about this type of sensations before? Thank you so much for taking the time answering back to me. Mutch love. 💕
This is EXACTLY what I need… my trauma is suck in my body. All of this made complete sense to me. I’ve been through so much trauma and I suppressed emotions. Yes I had anxiety and depression because I didn’t know what was wrong with me. But I surpassed that… sometimes body gets stressed out with symptoms when I’m not anxious it just happens or triggers/thoughts. I need to learn how to bring my body back to calm. I just get so frustrated because I want it to just get better. Such a helpful article! 💜
After a breakup where someone played with my emotions over and over I had a nervous breakdown around age 20 literally the past 13 years have felt robbed from me because I am not the person I was..I hate GAD with PTSD..I found your website and hope I can finally make some changes and get my life back.
Hi Emma, i just want to say Thank You to you ā¤ a year ago i was in a horrible place mentally and spiritually and i remember how your articles were a great source of support for me Through therapy and medication im in a better place now but i like to watch your articles to remember what i learned a year ago For the ones who are struggling right now, don’t lose hope, keep on helping yourself, you are going to be better after the storm is gone ā¤ we are all together in this
The timing of the article is scarily amazing. Recently I’ve been tuning into my emotions and body language to figure out what’s going on. Thinking to figure out what’s wrong wasn’t helping and stressed me out more. This article reinforces exactly what I’ve been working they lately. Thank you for the upload 🙏🏽
I had stomach problems for a couple of years that got progressively worse and had all sorts of tests done. Doctors couldn’t find anything. After about 9 months of a new marriage going south because someone was a pretender, I left. Got my own place. In about a month most of my stomach issues were resolved.
Thank you for this. It also popped into my article feed. I was abandoned and left with a relative who abused me daily between age 1-6. I finally went to live with my mother who soon began started dating, then married, a man who tried to rape me at gunpoint when I was 13. I left home. Years later, during my marriage, a religious teacher raped me. My husband, a psychiatrist, did nothing. I felt that I deserved to be treated this way. Eventually my husband divorced me, took my two girls away from me and left me homeless. I am homeless to this day and living in a hotel. I am trying to find my center and my worth. I am sad all the time and don’t sleep well. How I’ve survived this thus far, I do not know. I know that I have to find a way out of this situation.
I am ‘Kathy’. Thanks to discovering this type of therapy, I understand why I have chronic exhaustion & knowing it was linked to severe mental illness, but not sure where to start & It got so bad I had to quit a job I loved to focus on my health for several months. Also, talk therapy set me backwards, so Yoga, diet change and putting my health as #1 has changed the way I sense my body. I am grateful for Educators like you, I’m sharing these with everyone 💖
Feelings have been denied in our culture which today we are breaking down walls. Dr Antonio Damasio. Has helped me. My coworkers always ask me to finish my psychology degree. I presently a network engineer which is so easy fixing the problem. But humans are so complicated with emotions. AI will never work. Feelings. Music is feelings and emotions. Thank you.
I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia 8 years ago. Whenever I went to my regular doctor, I would hear myself say something out loud that I never thought about saying before it popped out. I would say to her, I have a broken central nervous system. I just knew that all the pain I was experiencing in my body from head to toe was from my central nervous system being broken and that break happen during a traumatic experience that triggered unconscious memories of childhood trauma. No doctor ever understands fibromyalgia and sometimes they don’t believe it’s real. But, when you only have three or four hours a day to do something before you can’t stand up straight and the pain signals that are going to your brain are unmanageable, then something is real and something is wrong. I tend to believe that my subconscious is always chewing on something until finally it spits out what it has come to understand is true. I believe I broke my central nervous system. But, if I broke it, then I can fix it. Sincerely, Carly
I have been going through for about 4 months now. Heart palpitations, burning in left side of my head, lack of sleep, easily startled, every little movement makes me nervous, now my face is twitching and every little pain I feel I run to google and find a cause then get stressed out I might have this sickness.
I have trauma from the last 6 years of my life involving family violence which has left me with diagnosed CPTSD and very much pain from grief and loss. I I am very socially avoidant now and prefer to stay with my dogs but feel lonely to be honest.I have grief that causes a wierd and intense pain- like feeling the centre of my being which often comes at night .
At 4:33 you state our nervous system has the ability to be on the alert, and then return to calm. But for those who are regularly retraumatized, the nervous system loses elasticity and a return to normal, or homeostasis, and the person lives in a constant state of fear. An example is a person who is traumatized by psychiatrists and other medical professionals then must interact with those very same people in getting treatment and regular medical care. I have yet to see a “trauma specialist” deal with the plight of those of us who were traumatized by corrupt and incompetent health care providers. You talk to survivors like we are stupid children. A major problem for trauma survivors is that the made-up psychiatric label “PTSD” imposes a stigma that CAUSES survivors to isolate and self-medicate. Jesus Christ was a traumatized person.
She hit the nail in the head at 9:40. Psychologists pretty much just want to hand you a prescription and send you on merry way. They would rather diagnose and let a pill “treat” your problems. I’ve witnessed a family member’s life being destroyed over the decades by powerful prescription meds, and he still struggles with the same core problems regardless of what meds he is on. This is the kind of “alternate” therapy needed to help people work through their traumas and emotional illnesses.
So beautifully explained, thank you! Healing is possible! I know, because I’m living it! I suffered for many years, just as the woman in the example….through much prayer and perseverance the Lord showed me (through different sources) that often when we don’t receive the comfort and safety that we need as a child, our bodies dont learn to self-regulate…over time, by sitting in the Lord Jesus’ comforting and loving presence on a regular basis (often daily), I’ve been able to heal…(when addressing painful memories, it is suggested you get help from a great therapist)…..I once suffered from much anxiety, but now its rare!! The safety I need, I’ve found in Him!!
Absolutely love how you explain this! It’s much easier for us Psych students and for you experts but i want to share this article with close friends so they can understand what I usually try to explain myself. I hope it helps them. I lost my husband in death 4 yrs ago and having gone through it by using my own psychology work is what motivates me to become a Psychotherapist 🙏🏼💜🦋
WOW!! This is what i needed to hear… I started out crying and rocking back and forth and by the end of this article I was calmer and could finally take a deep breath!! I have been through 2 very traumatic relationships… I do ok if I just go to work and then hide in my house on my days off. I know there is more to life so maybe little by little I can heal and get stronger and do more in life. I pray for peace and healing over all of us.
I had experienced chronic pain throughout my entire life. I’d been to endless specialized, tons of procedures and medication and not one doctor could figure out what was wrong. They couldn’t find anything physically wrong with me and the hopeless feeling was devastating. It ends up that trauma in my nervous system was exactly what was causing the problems. Not a single doctor mentioned it as a possibility.
i have severe ptsd, ocd, major depressive disorder, panic disorder and struggle with grief. ive been interested in somatic experiencing for a while but i developed physical chronic illness after medical negligence four years ago and im still trying to find treatments that work for my conditions… my constant physical symptoms and need to detach from my own body makes me worried that i cant benefit from somatic experiencing bc i have major physical symptoms in the way, especially in my gut. i have a digestive disorder and also POTS and im stuck in sympathetic dominance. every part of my body is in pain and i cant even sit comfortably or meditate or do yoga as i used to.so the physical barriers that i didnt have before now seem to be in the way of my healing from trauma and mental issues and vice versa. anything that requires me to feel my body seems i cant withstand cuz of the symptoms and i feel as if i need to dissociate from my own body cuz it now triggers me. with my ptsd though, i want to be able to benefit from one of these therapies..
Wow, I am living Kathy’s life and have been for the past 6 years of not longer from childhood trauma and toxic relationships in adulthood. And while I’ve value my therapist because I trust him and he is trauma informed and we do have weekly talk sessions I think he has guided me finally or we have just come to a place where I am not re-traumatizing myself and we’re working towards solutions but very honestly I do have borderline personality disorder as well and it’s a very tough exhausting emotionally taxing life to live and I really do think it takes a team and several different approaches to help borderline personality disorder individuals self regulate I’m so interested to learn more about you what you do this has been eye-opening and I’m very glad I found you
there is a role of touch/affection/boundaries in healing. the nervous system can be sootthed by safe touch/and separation/individuation/boundaries. touch teaches the nervous system that I AM CONNECTED SAFE AND NOT ALONE, BOUNDARIES TEACH THE NERVOUS SYSTEM THAT others are free and the world is not all about me. the integration of BONDING/BOUNDARIES is a central developemental phase that some people miss through either abandonment/neglect or enmeshment/control
Wow this was an awesome review. Anxiety and emotional healing is something I have thinking about lately. And this book sounds like the way out of so many mental and physiological stress responses that I have. Thank you so much. And you have a new subscriber. People do not understand how important it is to get healed from emotional trauma rather than continue on living in dysfunction. Took me years to realize talk therapy really wasn’t helping me. This bottom up approach just might be the winner for me because I run from feeling stuff because of the trauma or the fears but talking is not as difficult for me. But talking only works after I’ve gotten some revelation about why I do what I do. Otherwise it was just a waste of time and money, when I can give myself that same advice.
I was listening to you tonight while I was walking. It’s a beautiful nigh, full moon. I am so sad. It’s okay, I will feel better. It was so nice to feel the breeze, and my body. I stopped and close my eyes. I have faith that I will be better. I want to be happy, I do. Thanks so much for this. God bless you!
Very interesting and makes sense. But you know something…even without knowing any of this or ‘exploring’ it further…you can have a miraculous result and achieve the same result if not better…by .. Meditating… Meditation is the mind and the body’s miracle healer…just as sleep is. Learn to meditate…practice, practice practice and watch what happens!
Emma, I’ve been perusal your articles for a while now and I love them. I truly need them in my life, especially right now. Going through some hard times. My nervous system needs repair, I’m so glad you made this article š I think you’re wonderful. Lovely thoughts for everyone out there going through a hard time. I’m told it ends.
“Your nervous system does not function through thought, it functions through feelings.” Yes I agree. In my case though talk therapy helps because I am building a trusting relationship with my therapist, that is something I hardly know. Also talking makes me able to ‘look from a distance’ to my feelings whereas before I was overwhelmed by them and could not indicate where they were in my body.
I’m so glad watched this article because i been struggling with healing from the trauma i been going through Ptsd,anxiety,depression and not know how to heal is a struggle enough. I woke up to my wife motionless and i remember hearing that last gurgle of her last breath (the death Rattle) and the emts after 40 min of trying to revive her saying she’s gone. i have not been the same since. She passed away Feb 5th 2022 2 days before my 44th Bithday.
I don’t agree at all, this is addressed to People who suffered trauma, yes, with all the consecuentes. However the are People Who suffered trauma and their situation got worse, as a consecuence of the very same trauma. The trauma made life more difficult, caused more problems, yes, even more traumata…. which obviously means that they could not change, but are still fighting for justice, having court cases and a lot more sufferering, and still more stress…. This is not the way, stress strikes very hard!!
I feel like my brain is at a point that doesn’t know how to be in a sense of safety. I feel “stuck” mentally, physically, & emotionally. My spirituality is my safe space. I go to Jesus often. But since I’m stuck in a pattern of living in survival mode I don’t know how to get back to some “normalcy”. I believe that I need some CBT and more EMDR therapy. I have not tried CBT yet. But it’s so hard to find a therapist that uses Christianity or should I say the Bible in its approach which is what I’m needing. I need to connect closer to Jesus as a whole.
This makes so much sense, It’s been a couple of years since my first relationship ended, but although I am ok with what happened now when I think back on it what I remember the most was this knot in my throat from the pain I felt back then. I think the experience was so deeply painful to me that I still feel that knot to this day; the trauma is still stored in there.
Can these give us sharp electric one second pains, with and without movement. Sometimes when I m reaching out to take something, I stop in my track because in my chest cavity, I can feel a pull, a never pain, doctors say it’s anxiety, I just don’t understand how!?! Because it’s soooo physical 😭. Please someone tell me
Start doing some form of meditation, and the rest will follow! Ones the stress is trriggered in your body, the trick is to not stop the feelings or fysical sensations. Let it wash over you like a wave. After a short while you will feel the stress disapear! ! You may have to do this more than ones, but if you get it right one time, there is nothing to stop you from doing it again until you don`t need it anymore.
I felt tension in my jaw which is often an anxiety thing which than tenses up to my temoles and I sometimes get headaches fir that tension. My upper back felt s little tense too but it’s probably because of sitting all th time. My legs felt a little tense too which isnprobably because I like to go running. The part of my body that surprised me was my velly and lower back ut felt tense and anxious like u know when u have a bad feeling about sth. and are scared that sth. or someone is going to go wrong/ scream at u. I will try meditation and analyse this things. I’m still a minor and have been trying to heal myself for 4 years now and tbh I think meditation, inner child work, a lot of self reflecrion/accepting/compasion, looking at all the patterns of my behavior hekped a lot but somehow I sometimes still slip into anxiety amd suicidal thoughts and thinking the world is extremely negative. This article made sense I will try to meditate and do certain yoga posses or sth. that might loosen up the tension so I can feel safe again. Not sure how but I want my nervous system to calm down this were just some ideas of anyone else has sth. else to recommend to me I’m happy to hear it!
I have epilepsy that is triggered by stress/anxiety/poor mental health. If my mental health is good I don’t have seizures and seizures are a response of the central nervous system out of wack, sending signals to the wrong places in your body. I cut out everyone in my life that was stressing me out, causing me pain, anxiety and the seizures went away. I slept better, was happier. But yea, if something makes me anxious/upset I get physically shaken and if that happens I now know I have to take a step back, deep breath and work on my mental health so I don’t slip into having a seizure.
WHOLE SYSTEM – everything is ENERGY: I just want to point out it’s important to consider health mentally, emotionally and physically and not in isolation of one another but as a whole system. The thought triggers > the feelings (emotions) which effect the nervous system as you mentioned Emma. The results or symptoms show up physically. When we are angry we see the puffed up red face, the body language. Everything is ENERGY thoughts included. Nice work Emma.
your mention of the rocking/body work made me wonder. i wonder if there is research around touch therapy. i know that could be a pandora’s box because we are so touch averse in this society but i’d argue that is one of my biggest problems. people have paid people for intimate time since the beginning of money, and we have modern versions in japan, for example, with “cuddle hotels.” just wondering if a platonic touch would do anything.
i have suffered severe anxiety state and depression since childhood im now 59. This is the first time i have ever really understood whats going on in my body, so thankyou. i found your talk relaxing, unrushed and reassuring. I will watch more of your articles. im in UK, and this country is quite unknowledgeable about problems with your “nerves”. i am in pain every day and night with fibromyalgia and arthritis and i suffer with electric shock pains throughout my body, all the doctors have done is xray me, give me meds for depression and anxiety and offered me gabapentin for nerve pain…im not satisfied and am looking into ways of helping myself. This article has kick started me thankyou
I recommend the nervous system trauma healing music for meditation. I also recommend solar plexus chakra healing music. I rly also recommend connecting with nature!! Like walking without shoes and meditating some where where is more quiet. Just being without the phone or any other distractions. Connecting with yourself 🙂👁ļø
I love the somatic movements and stretching too. Dr Pat Ogden, Peter Levine, Bessel van der Kolk are a few of my favourite western Trauma healing teaching somatics by following the body. I appreciate your information at the start and that’s what all BC, Canada that is – Women’s Counsellors teach as well. 3 staged feminist trauma treatment is to start with education in the bio-pyscho-social, not talk therapy to help understanding it’s not about you but the nervous system when rewired and hijacked.
traumatic experiences often trigger hidden anger which turns into hatred ….esp for the person(s) who wronged you. Then the trap of wanting vindication, and at that point, forgiveness is a long way off. Depending on your early childhood experiences of using forgiveness to be set free, or lack of learning about it, . I have met people who went through an incredible amount of tragedy & pain. I am looking forward to learning more about moving on from such traumas that trigger a ‘hopeless’ mindset for some. It took me years, too many years to let go of the hurts/trauma, simply because I kept feeding the narrative of what could have been. I was letting “yesterdays” still live within me, Finally, I had to accept I have no control of “yesterdays”, moreover, vengeance does not belong to me. It belongs to God, The life of Louis Zamperini, coming to terms of his years of being tortured in a prison camp, only came when he discovered he could have peace when he forgave his captors. He even went to share forgiveness with those who tortured him. I pray you have victory of a great magnitude as you finish your journey.,
Emma, This is the first time I have come across your, Therapy In A Nutshell, website. I honestly want to share, that just listening to you introduce your website, why you started this passion project and how you have put together for us so many resources, is very encouraging. Thank you for all your work and support. I will look further into your resources. God be with you and bless you. Pastor Charles Butindaro
I believe we will find peace in the mist of these feelings.I been beat by my brother like I was in a boxing match.My ex-husband raped me in front of our daughter,my nephew shot my son in the head, etc.I have forgiven these people but Im in search of reversing always on fight and flight mode.I believe it’s going happen for us all We can do this.💕
Oh wow, I just found you tonight! I have lived with severe chronic pain for 19 years, stemming from an ectopic pregnancy that ruptured. Since my emergency surgery, I have had countless other surgeries in the name of combating the pain. I have also gone thru endless healing modalities of all species. What you said in your article makes a lot of sense. I will surely subscribe. Thank you so much! 🙏ā¤ļø
Thanks, I initially reacted against the simplification of the nervous system, but it sounds like it has great potential. Then I found your instruction to switch off and so on quite intrusive but then when you mentioned body wisdom and allowing it to exist, I felt at ease with allowing someone else to speak deeply who is intent on well being also.
Ive been going through therapy for more than 15 years due to childhood trauma and I have never heard some one explain my mental illness problems like you have. I am that “kathy” in the story but I havent recieved the help. I wish I could have you as my therapist 1on1 to help me bc my nervous system is wacked out which has caused me so many other problems. Everybody just wants to put me on medacine that never seems to work.
Everything makes so much sense now. For years and years I thought I was the problem. Coming from an incredibly dysfunctional childhood, bullied in school so I didn’t know how to defend myself. At age 14 I was a miserable person. And then I was sexually assaulted at age 21 by an older man I thought that was love. After that I was intimate with another man for a 4 night stand and I thought I deserved it, I wasn’t mentally there so all these horrible things happened to me
So glad to find your website! I have been dealing with flare up of intense physical pain due to trauma and prolonged intense stress. It was wild to make the connection that my body was in pain because of the emotional pain I was holding onto and unable to fully feel since I had to “be strong” and keep things going. Now that I know what’s happening I feel so relieved there are ways to work with it and heal. Thank you so much! 🙏💗āØ
Wow that exercise was amazing! I could relate to the lady in the book. I had trauma as a child as I was bullied at school and had toxic relationships. On leaving my marriage I was in temporary accommodation and a couple of places I felt I had to be on high alert, in the first place there was this bloke who seemed to be drunk when I first met him and other people in house were nervous of him too, after a while I got to know him better and he was no longer a threat. Then this new couple moved in below me and they were complaining about me walking around upstairs even though they were noisy late at night. I was then moved to an awful place and there was another couple who hogged the shared bathroom and kitchen. Then complained to me about mess in the bathroom. He got aggressive when I complained about him talking loudly when in the bath. It all came to a head and the police were called out. Luckily not long after that I moved to a better place and in May I got my flat.
Emma, thank you. I think this is one of the most important and helpful articles you have made. I don’t know why I didn’t notice it a year ago when I first found you. Between then and now I have actually taken a course on this topic and yet I’ve been feeling confused about a number of things, in particular how this area fit into the field of trauma therapy and into the field of therapy and psychology more broadly. To my mind you clarify some important things in this article and in addition, to me this is the most calming and gently voiced article article of yours (and I think I have soon watched all of them at least one time, many of them several times) which is in itself very regulating and helpful.
I’m actually so glad i got to understand all of these by myself, i got damaged severely im the process because i was fueled with anxiety and depression when kept unnoticed those can kill you slowly, because we think we are doing ourselves a favor by looking for answers in the outer world that would save us from us, but the truth is no one can, only you can by claiming your control back! Whenever you face a problem in life, remember that you probably dont have to think as much as you think because that only make you avoid seing the core of things that are wrong in you.
I have been getting treatment for PTSD that developed 6 months ago. Therapy has helped ALOT but I notice my body is still stuck in fight/flight. As in I am constantly “on”. I never feel I am able to switch off and relax like I used to. Obviously this has impacted my sleep as well. I don’t sleep soundly. I wake up numerous times in the night. I wonder if there is hope for me and if it is at all possible that my nervous system will go back to normal. I do yoga, I am being intentional about seeing friends, I listen to music, I go to the beach….all the common things that get suggested for someone trying to recover from PTSD, but my nervous system does not seem to be getting the message! Do you and anyone have any ideas on what I can do to unstick my nervous system from fight/fight response so I can start feeling normal again?
You are amazing. I just found out about your website. I just got diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder and I’m slowly realising how my mind is probably responsible for my physical symptoms. I love your approach and I will definitely use you as a point of references towards my recovery journey. Thank you for providing us with such wonderful content. This is giving me understanding and hope. May the universe bless you
Wow – very interesting! I am now 60, and have been suffering from anxiety/panic attacks, depression and OCD since I was 4 and 5 years of age because I was sexually molested by a neighbor during those years. In my 41 year marriage my husband and I lost 2 babies to miscarriage and a stillborn daughter – I almost hemmoraged to death through the stillborn birth. I am an only child and had 2 alcoholic parents who passed away years ago due to alcoholism – so I have had my share of traumas. In the 1980’s I was finally put on medications for the anxiety and depression and have been on many different ones over the years. I now have Rheumatoid Arthritis and other autoimmune issues and my anxiety and depression has been rearing it’s ugly head again. I will order this suggested book and see if it can help me.
I’m waking up in a massive panic attack as usual I’ve been sick for the hour for no apparent reason. Childhood trauma and constant instability I guess. I found your article trying to calm myself down. Thank you so much for talking about the body and how it has stored all this stress. I’m trying to find a solution but every day is the same. I feel sick everyday. My nervous system is damaged and not stable I’m always freaking out because my heart is pounding so hard and I can’t breathe. I never feel safe with counselors when I do talk to them. I always feel I’m being lied to. I’m always in danger. Thank you for the advice and information 🙏🕯ļø🕊ļø🌸🌺 Im going to buy that book and see if it helps.
In this article I found the answers that I’ve been looking for for so long!! Thank you sooo much for all the great work you do and for sharing your knowledge!! I feel so empowered now thanks to you and hope I can heal my nervous system. I’ve had twitches for more than 10 years and they are extremely depleating and can drive you mad. And I know they are related to emotional trauma. So thank you sooo so much!!! <3
As a trauma therapist, I can attest that talk therapy doesn’t help with anxiety,PTSD or trauma. I use Somatic Experiencing in conjunction with hypnotherapy. It’s very calming AND very effectiveā¦ for myself (as I use it for my own PTSD), and for my clients. Find yourself a great alternative-based therapist. 🦋Paige Bartholomew.
I keep thinking all these findings and techniques are amazing, but what is most helpful of all is the EMPATHY that these amazing therapists give to their clients. I feel better at the mere idea of having all these helpful attention, being and feeling so seen, heard, important and validated in such a therapeutic context like that, it has got to have a healing impact on our brains. I wish I could afford them <3
Quite helpful . In the moments of grief & sorrow, this article has come out as best possible medicine ! Reducing the fight/ flight responce (sympathetic nervous system) & activating rest & digest responce i.e. “parasympathetic nervous ” system seems to be the key. Thanks again for providing valuable information when it was badly needed !!
The other thing not being discussed is the correlation between mental health and pollution. Below is copy/pasted exert from Kristina Marusic’s recent podcast. “31% increase in bipolar disorder, a 104% increase in schizophrenia, a 210% increase in personality disorder and a 68% increase in major depression.” (In highly polluted areas)
Yeah, I need more help on my nerves and stress and anxiety going through a bad health problem. Addison’s disease need all the help I can get is horrible and I’m not on any medication but I am trying to take natural supplements to help money all the therapy I can get, terrible thing I’m going to turn my life upside down. Love your article you got a soft voice and very helpful. Thank you.🥰
Very good and warranted. It never ends, nor should it. My mind/ spirit cannot fully comprehend how people so Imbecilic can survive in this harsh and complex af world, then again in calm moments I thrive better than them lol. Everything is a double edged sword- even knowledge. Over-reaching just to reach some goal eventually we think will make us happy isn’t necessarily the result we may need, and may just lead to burnout-, Especially with the high expectations. But when we just enjoy the journey regardless of the outcome as a super sensitive person, thru no fault of my own, although strong physically and mentally usually, are pretty much the only journeys worth going on. Consistency triumphs over grand peaks, since peaks will come with enough quantity anyways, less unnecessary b.s. (if people realized this, I wouldn’t have so many inevitable funks and perhaps a utopia could be possible, assuming the jerks/ exploiters could be dealt with) and just staying active in general all the time creates positive feedback loops
It’s disappointing you refer multiple times to psychologists and other mental health professionals missing the mind body connection. This is such a broad statement you make and simply not true. I’m unsure where you are gathering your views from but as a psychologist myself I can say we use many techniques and approaches that encourage using your body to regulate and very much discuss acknowledging and feeling your emotions not suppressing them. Just wanted to clarify this as your views are misleading people
Nooo why did you ask me to notice my surroundings??? š I immediately noticed mega loud noise coming from outside from airplanes, helicopters, and trucks. As to my own body, I immediately noticed severe headache, dizziness, and burning pain in my fractured leg. No thanks š I have lived on high alert my whole life. When I was 18, I snapped and killed myself. However, I was revived and made to continue to exist, so no relief there :))) I have Autism, ADHD, OCD, and dyslexia. This world is not designed for people like me. I have had therapy in the past that actively harmed me. I believe that was because that therapy was designed by NT people for NT people š
Dear Emma, thank you so much for all your help. Please know your voice is very distinctive. Bucking the system is great, and I appreciate your efforts. I don’t see a way to DM you on YouTube. If I figure it out I will do so. Many of us want to see you succeed, and be able to speak out and proud for doing the right thing, soon, until then stay safe and know we see and appreciate you.