Understanding the Impact of Trauma

Many trauma victims themselves don't realize or comprehend the extensive impact of trauma on the body and mind. When one experiences trauma, especially in a case of physical abuse or early childhood abandonment, their mind cannot rationalize what had happened to them, so it chooses to close itself off and develop unhealthy behaviours that leave no fruitful soil for a healthy life and recovery.

What can help trauma victims start to heal and thrive is to open their eyes and notice when they’re experiencing self-destructive tendencies, clarify as to why they are happening, and give them the necessary tips and tools they need to break through.

The Impact of Trauma on The Self

When trauma occurs and emotional overwhelm hits, it could be too much to grasp all at once. What often happens in this case is that a person will go through the process of fragmentation.

Fragmentation occurs when the body decides they do not want to tackle this feeling of overwhelm at the given moment, so it splits it’s consciousness and processes into smaller sections and keeps the emotionally overwhelmed bit somewhere in the back.

The rational self appears only in the front-facing fragment, assuring the body can handle day-to-day life. However, if a trigger related to trauma occurs, the overwhelmed fragment will come to the forefront and cause a chain of irrational and hectic responses.

This happens because the brain disconnected its rational and emotional processes, as well, so it never really had the chance to properly asses the complex emotions caused by trauma.

The Key Steps to Recovery

There is no room for rationalization until the trauma victims themselves realize they’re stuck in a repetitive pattern and show desire for recovery.

The role of a therapist is to pay attention to every emotional and physical response and recognize the subtle cries for help, such as tension, evasion, or over-connection.

Once all patterns are clear, the task of the therapist is to enlighten the victim on how, when, and why they follow these patterns and assist them in getting out of the loop. Before doing so, the therapist must ensure that their patient recognizes their office as a safe space and that they can fully relax and unwind accordingly.

Human Aspect of Touch in Trauma

It’s very common in trauma therapy for a person to have never actually felt a safe space and a proper and secure physical connection at all, regardless of being lonely or not. Attachment issues usually stem from absent parents in early childhood.

A therapist can amplify empowerment on a physical level when incorporating light, non-invasive, human touch in their sessions to help their patients relax, temporarily reducing the impact of trauma that prohibited them from opening up more.

Trauma victims can also get emotional relief through increasing their receptiveness to touch outside of therapy in other professional environments such as getting a light massage.

How Touch Helps Kids

To ensure that your child doesn’t feel abandonment, have attachment issues, or get stuck with processing emotional overwhelm and tension, bonding through the power of physical, human touch plays a vital role.

You can use various different methods and techniques for a subtle and non-invasive approach. Through the physical closeness, your child will get that feeling of having a safe space that will help them develop properly and establish meaningful connections in the future.

Conclusion

Recovery is a long and bumpy road. The impact of trauma results in a complex mental state where the person develops a shell and lives a fragmented and closed-off life. The role of the therapist is to provide a safe space and analyze all of these patterns, helping that person re-integrate their thoughts and emotions into a functional whole.

This includes assessment on both a verbal and emotional, but also physical level through a gentle and non-invasive approach. The desired end-result is for the person to learn how to find a safe space and break off the loop they’re stuck in, regaining complete power over their mind, body, and reactions.