This week Orlando trauma therapist Kelli Skorman talks about how childhood trauma can effect us and the hope that comes from receiving trauma therapy.
Kelli Skorman, MSLicensed Mental Health Counselor
Are you feeling overwhelmed, anxious, depressed or simply not yourself? Do you find yourself avoiding situations that could trigger flashbacks of a past event? Your feelings may be explained by a past trauma.
If you are suffering the effects of trauma, whether it be from childhood or a more recent incident, you probably have feelings and symptoms that do not make sense to you. You may be wondering if you will ever feel normal again and asking yourself how it is possible that something that happened twenty years ago could be affecting you now. Your reactions to certain stimuli may not make sense to you. Recovering from trauma can be a complicated but not impossible process. Receiving trauma therapy from a trained therapist can have incredible results.
Some of the symptoms of trauma include anxiety, hyper-vigilance, overreacting to situations or stimuli, procrastination, loss of interest in activities, insomnia, nightmares, emotional detachment, irritability, social isolation, guilt, and loneliness. Trauma can occur at any time in life, however trauma that occurs in childhood can create an inability to regulate emotions or a numbing to emotion. Some examples of childhood experience that are considered traumatic include physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, observing violent events, or having an alcoholic parent. The mental health effects of a traumatic event are wide ranging, but can include anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorder, depression, and substance abuse disorders. Physical issues that can be related to past trauma can include high blood pressure, migraines/headaches, obesity, and many other physical health issues.
When a child is born, they rely and depend on their parents or primary caregiver as their source of love, understanding, safety, and support. If a child grows up in a hostile or abusive environment, they immediately learn to distrust, and a set of negative beliefs about themselves and the world begin to develops. The child’s capacity to form normal healthy relationships throughout life is therefore inhibited. Attachment bonds are rarely developed, and close relationships are minimal.
If a traumatic past is getting in your way of living a healthy life, you most likely need support and the proper tools to free yourself from the past and begin to live your optimal life. People with trauma have an extra layer of difficulty that most do not. Effective trauma therapy in addition to skills that connect your body and mind can have positive life long effects. The good news is that you can move past the effects of trauma whether big or small. You may have tried self-help books, support groups or even traditional talk therapy. If these have not worked, do not give up, trauma therapy from a trained trauma therapist can have most favorable results. You really can live the life you have only dreamed of!
At Life Skills Resource Group we are here to help. Our Orlando therapists Kelli Skorman and Risa Bos specialize in EMDR, a therapy that is highly effective with trauma. Begin your healing journey today with a FREE phone consultation by calling us at 407.355.7378. We look forward to helping you attain an optimal life.