A little bit about Trauma:
(Before I begin, I am not an expert in the field of trauma recovery, nor am I a therapist. I speak from self study and a handful of trauma informed classes as well as a lifetime's worth of personal experience. As we begin to unravel what "trauma" is and how it effects our decisions and our bodies, please please PLEASE seek help from a trained mental health professional if you find yourself struggling! Life coaching works very well hand in hand with therapy. But, coaching is a forward- moving practice, a route you will take once the processing and healing of past wounds have been addressed. It does not replace the work of therapy.)
Traumatic Event: "an unbearable emotional experience that lacks a relational home" Adapted by Robert Stolorow
What this definition says to me is "I have experienced something profoundly hurtful to ME and I don't know what to do with it" The traditional definition of trauma is very narrow and involve extremely BIG events - Known as "capital T" Trauma. But there is also "lower case T" meaning the accumulation of small events. And that's what I want to look at today...
But first a BRAIN ANATOMY LESSON:
Prefrontal cortex - In charge of rationalization, organization, and intelligence
Amygdala - Drives and regulates our emotions and behavior
Hippocampus - Formation and long term storage of memory
Hypothalumas - Sends messages between the brain and body through the autonomic nervous system
Let's put it together: your amygdala is your "baby brain" It stores your primative survival instincts, first impressions, and somatic (body) experiences. It's the part of your brain that yells "OMG there's a bear chasing you! RUN... I don't know why just do it!" Normally, the Prefrontal cortex would take into consideration that there is not a bear, remind you to calm down and carry on with your business. That's when your Hippocampus pulls out a memory from its filing cabinet and says "but wait, remember that time an actual bear chased you?" And she quickly runs this reference card over toHypothalumas who gets on her loud speaker to your body parts and screams "ok every part, it's time to panic!"
What does this mean, you ask? Have you ever found yourself feeling humilated or shameful? Paralyzed by indecision or resisting something? Questioning your safety? Do you have fears around scarcity that don't seem to make sense? You're noticing a pattern of behavior and it's causing problems. What is the source of it?? More often than not, it's those small traumatic experiences that have accumulated over time, that have been locked away in the vault of your brain. It's a subconscious response to a conscious moment.
As Dr. MC McDonald stated in one of her podcast episodes (The Trauma Tapes) "If you had an ingrown toe nail that was causing so much pain you couldn't put your foot down. And then you noticed it has worked it's way up to your hip and now your back - you wouldn't say "well that's a dumb injury" and deny yourself health care! You would understand that it's all connected" Same goes for these packed away traumas you've been carrying around! You owe it to yourself to get curious - notice the patterns and greet these monsters with kindness and forgiveness. Give them a name and context, unpack them and introduce them to your rational Prefrontal Cortex.
There is so much more to this work...how trauma and stress negatively affect your body and health and your ability to live a full life on your own terms. And we will break it down bit by bit over the next few weeks. But for now, take some time to excavate some of your root causes and see how it feels to understand them and sit with them, even for just a minute. Remember you do not have to do this alone! There is support and understanding in the shared experience of others. And, there is professional help! I have resources if you need them