Blogs

Most people will experience some type of trauma during their lifetime. When you think of childhood trauma, however, the idea just hits different. 

It might be a common misconception that when trauma happens that young, the child isn’t going to be severely affected by it due to their age and/or understanding. Unfortunately, childhood trauma comes with a cost and can have a ripple effect later in life if unaddressed. 

Depending on your experience, your effects can be more mild or more severe than others. Understanding how your trauma can affect you can help you regain control. 

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Not every relationship is created equal. Despite your best efforts, some relationships involve toxic people and are, therefore, doomed to be toxic and possibly traumatizing.

When you share a relationship with someone, whether a significant other, a family member, or a close friend, you generally form a bond with them. Having this bond should be a positive result, but often with abusive relationships, there is a negative bond called a trauma bond. 

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A healthy childhood should be filled with innocence and a sense of playfulness. Fun is being had. Memories are being made. Relationships are being formed. In a perfect world, everything should be beautiful and affirming. Unfortunately, life is far from perfect, and situations occur that can cause childhood trauma experiences. Physical or emotional abuse, neglect, death of a loved one, violence (either to another family member or to the child), divorce, or bullying even can overwhelm a child.

As a trauma event happens, it leaves an emotional scar. Childhood traumas can be more complicated because children don’t always have the faculties, knowledge, and awareness to process them properly. As a person ages, these traumas can leave a lasting impact.

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Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, or EMDR therapy, is a type of therapy intervention used to treat mental health conditions stemming from trauma. Originally used to treat PTSD, it has had an expanding role in other areas like anxiety, OCD, and depression. 

It falls under the umbrella of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy. Under the guidance of a trained professional, you incorporate specific eye movements in order to reprocess your brain’s way of thinking. The goal is to help reduce a traumatic memory’s grip on a person who has experienced a traumatic event.

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The white picket fence. The happily ever after. It’s what dreams are made of. 

Until it isn’t. 

From a young age, many children are taught that the “norm” is for their parents to be married, live together, and remain that way until the end. Not every partnership stands the test of time, resulting in divorce. Maybe you experienced it growing up as a child. Maybe it occurred during high school years or even later in your life. Having divorced parents can pose issues at any age.

Divorce is generally an ugly word per social norms, but it has become commonplace. Sometimes, it’s even a healthy option in all reality. Being an adult doesn’t make the process any easier when your parents decide to separate. Honestly, it can be harder. Here are some tips for managing your grief.

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When you hear the words “individual resilience,” what comes to mind? What does it mean to you?

No matter what hardships and difficulties you’ve encountered in life, resiliency plays a crucial role in helping you move beyond them. While people may describe it differently, at its core, resiliency is being able to navigate hurdles and setbacks without giving up. It is a type of inner strength that helps you withstand the tough times and even come out stronger on the other side.

One of the beautiful things about resiliency is that it is a skill that you can nurture and grow. Even if you don’t think of yourself as a resilient person, you can find a way to become one.

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If you have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the coronavirus pandemic may have changed how you can manage your symptoms. You may have felt an increase in your PTSD symptoms and found yourself more easily triggered than before.

Of course, the pandemic has created significant changes in the lives of many people. Restrictions and attempts to manage it have added stress and uncertainty on top of the everyday life stress. Anxiety over becoming ill with the virus, losing loved ones to the virus, or making ends meet after pandemic-related job losses are ongoing issues for millions. Enforced isolation often plays out as increased depression and anxiety.

If your PTSD symptoms have become increasingly overwhelming during the pandemic, please know that there are ways you can manage them during this time.

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Living through a pandemic hasn’t been easy. The initial confusion and fear from its early days haven’t improved much. There’s still uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 virus, and it hasn’t been well contained in the United States.

Flareups continue to occur throughout the nation. Some people get the virus and never realize it, while others die horrible deaths from it. People often have no idea where they picked the virus up if they do get ill. And we struggle much to prevent the spread.

While we used to walk through crowded places with no face coverings and little fear of becoming ill, we now fear the most basic social encounters. People are even being told to limit how much they talk while wearing a mask to slow the spread.

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Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR) has been around for several decades. It’s possible that you may have stumbled across it while researching different therapy methods. But, most people don’t know what to expect from EMDR therapy.

Admittedly, it is a bit unique and sometimes hard to understand how it works. In short, EMDR offers you the opportunity to address and resolve past trauma.

Accomplished in a two-part series, first, you work with a compassionate therapist trained in EMDR since they’ll know how to guide you through this process. And next, you participate in a step-by-step procedure (usually) over the course of several weeks.

These two facets make it possible for you to deal with the trauma that may have been affecting you for far too long. But that’s just an overview. Here’s what you can expect from EMDR Therapy.

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Millions of Americans are impacted by emotional trauma. The number worldwide is unknown—likely millions upon millions.

However, what we do know is that emotional trauma occurs in various ways and manifests in people’s lives differently.

Undergoing a traumatic experience causes behavioral, psychological, and physical symptoms such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As you may know, PTSD is a common expression of emotional trauma.

Yet, this isn’t the only imbalance created by emotional trauma. Many people feel as though their very sense of self has been shaken to the core.

Here’s how to make sense of this inner-quaking and get your footing back, regaining balance in your life.

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Emotional abuse occurs when one person belittles, ignores, rejects, isolates, or scares another with the aim to devalue their thoughts, feelings, desires, appearance, preferences, or needs.

The ultimate goal? To gain control over them.

What drives emotional abuse and why?

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Imagine feeling extreme distress when…

…you’re suddenly confronted with a combat scene as you’re watching a show.

…you find yourself in a crowd at a grocery store, an amusement park, or a party with friends and family.

…you hear the sound of firecrackers going off during a holiday celebration.

…you’re in unfamiliar surroundings with a lack of open areas.

Imagine the hypervigilance, the panic, your shallow breath, and beads of sweat forming on your forehead. You turn everywhere, check everything and everyone… until you see an obscure figure in the crowd or on the roof of a building.

Imagine yourself diving to the ground, trying to find cover… only to suddenly realize, you’re not in combat anymore. Nobody is shooting at you. Nobody is threatening your life.

The war is over! But only on the outside.

Inside, you carry deep scars that never seem to heal.

That is what it feels like to be a combat veteran suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). That is the legacy of an increasing number of soldiers.

But they are not the only ones that suffer. Their dependents (military families) are impacted as well.

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