Is The Past Stopping You From Enjoying The Present?

Do you feel as if you will never overcome a distressing event from your life? Are you experiencing flashbacks that force you to relive painful memories? Is the amount of time you are asleep reduced because of constant nightmares?

Although you try to live in the moment, you can’t seem to shake away distressing moments from your past. You know you don’t want to be defined by your past, but moving on from a painful experience is harder than you thought.

If you were the victim of abuse, you might be struggling to trust anyone again. While the scars others left on you have faded, the internal wounds still won’t go away.

As you grapple with anxiety and depression that are the result of your experience, you may find that you are no longer living the life you want for yourself. Perhaps debilitating headaches, stomach aches, or a lingering sense of fear prevent you from ever wanting to leave the comfort of your own home.

Or maybe you are the parent of a child who is no longer acting like themselves. Withdrawing from their friends, not eating, and no longer talking to you, you may be worried that something deeper is going on with them. As a parent, it can be hard to pinpoint what is going on with your child–is it just a phase? Or are the effects of a past event causing stress and behavioral changes?

No matter what the event was or the age it occurred, trauma can have lasting effects on the person that experienced it. Yet, going to therapy for your trauma can help you heal from the past.

Trauma Can Impact Any Person At Any Stage Of Life

We have all heard the phrase “time heals all wounds,” and unfortunately, many people believe that this old adage is the absolute truth. It is common for people to think that distance is healing. That as more time passes, wounds will heal then you will feel better. Sadly, this is not always the case.

At some point, we will all experience a traumatic event in our lives — but not everyone will react the same way. What could be considered traumatizing for one person might hardly affect another. As such, traumatic events can be broken down into two main categories: big “T” trauma and little “t” trauma. Some examples of big “T” trauma are car accidents, sexual or domestic abuse, mental abuse, and neglect, while little “t” trauma may refer to the build up of distress over time.

These instances of little “t” trauma may seem inconsequential at the time but can have dramatic effects on a person’s mental health. For instance, if you are noticing changes in your child’s behavior or mood, it could be related to something simple. Your child could be experiencing PTSD from a bullying incident, embarrassment from an incident at school, or a learning disability that causes them to feel shame.

Trauma can be tricky because we may not experience symptoms from PTSD in a timeline that seems logical. It could take months, sometimes even years, for the effects of trauma to sink in. As we reach adulthood, we may still have unresolved trauma from our childhoods that are still causing us distress.

It can be hard not to feel hopeless when you are trying to overcome past trauma. Seeking treatment for your trauma can feel scary, and you may be hesitant to talk about it. Working with a trauma counselor, however, can give you a renewed sense of hope for a better future.