6 Essential Steps to Heal Trauma
Trauma is the result of a negative event or experience. It occurs when you feel emotionally or mentally hurt by something that has happened in your life. Sometimes traumatic events may lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The trauma isn't the event or experience itself; it is your body and mind's response to it. Traumatic stress significantly impacts the brain, making it crucial to take steps toward recovery and mitigate the negative effects as much as possible.
If you have dealt with a traumatic event, you might be worried that you may not be able to recover. While it can certainly take some time to feel fully happy and healthy again, you can take a few steps to help you move forward.
Here are 6 different ways to help heal from trauma:
Connect With Others
Connection with others is key to happiness and security as humans, and isolating yourself while dealing with trauma can lead to negative feelings like depression and anxiety. Spending time with friends or family when you feel up for it and sharing what you've experienced when you feel ready can help you feel less isolated.
Physical Movement
Exercise has the power to help improve symptoms of anxiety & depression. In addition to helping you heal, exercise and physical movement also provide your body with much-needed feel-good chemicals like endorphins. Find a way you like to move and know that you are not limited to gym workouts or traditional exercise.
Practice Self-Care
Practicing self-care is taking action to do things that benefit you and your well being. Self-care isn't only about bubble baths and doing facemasks. Self care is also doing the things you don't want to do, knowing the results with ultimately help, like having that difficult conversation with a family member about boundaries, or making that doctor's appointment. Sometimes, the self care we need ist what we want to do, but will ultimately assist in our well being.
Engage in Creativity
Getting creative might mean making or listening to music, poetry, journaling, or even reading a book. Engaging your brain in creative and artistic endeavors can improve your physiological and psychological health.
EMDR Therapy
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) is a special therapy modality focused on breaking down negative thoughts and beliefs about yourself that stem from traumatic or disturbing events. With EMDR, you can "reprocess" the negative memories and thinking by taking the emotional charge out of the experience of a specific memory. As a result, the meaning of a once painful event is transformed into a different, more helpful perspective.
Brainspotting Therapy
Brainspotting is a therapy modality focused on bypassing the "thinking" part of our brain to access the brain's deeper emotional and body-based parts. Brainspotting will help you access your healing process to rewire your brain connections, healing what once were emotional wounds that used to take over your mind. This process allows for new ways of thinking, more insight, and new ways of showing up in the world.
Healing from trauma might feel overwhelming. However, know that there are many options at your disposal, and if you use them, you'll be on your way to feeling better soon. If you are interested in starting EMDR therapy or Brainspotting therapy, connect with our Client Care Coordinator Gyzelle at 925-257-0205 or book your free consultation here.
