How Trauma Can Influence Your Relationships
Studies show most people will experience or be exposed to some kind of traumatic incident before the age of 18. Experiencing a traumatic event, whether this happened in childhood or adulthood disrupts and alters everything we previously viewed as “normal,” and we’re left to deal with the aftermath effects. What most people often don’t consider until they may be exploring this idea in therapy, is how past or recent traumas can affect our current relationships and the way we interact with others after this event.
Trauma can change the way you think.
Generally, our views and outlook of the world, people, and things around us are shaped by past experiences. Traumatic experiences can cause us to question our previous reality, and often we may be left wondering whether we can trust our previous view of the world, people, and things around us as we don’t feel safe. This can affect how we relate to everyone around us, including our loved ones.
Trauma can cause you to be avoidant.
After trauma occurs, we try to prevent the same thing from happening again. Our body does this as well making us more aware of our surroundings. Because of this, it’s easy for us to make loose associations and generalizations toward otherwise harmless stimuli, leading us to avoid any people, places, and things that may show us any remote similarities to the trauma we faced even if those things by themselves are harmless.
Trauma can make you more hyper-alert of your surroundings.
When something stressful or traumatic occurs, our cortisol levels spike, and our brain’s automatic responses are triggered resulting in our fight/flight/freeze/fawn response. This is our body and brain’s way of trying to protect us from perceived danger. Our brain, however, sometimes can still be in this hyperalert state even after the traumatic event is over, especially if something triggers our body into thinking it’s a similar situation or sensation that’s occurring.
Trauma can illicit confusing emotions like anger, sadness, and numbness.
Emotions toward a traumatic experience can be complex. For some people, they will respond with intense emotions such as anger or sadness. Others may experience a feeling of numbness, which occurs when our body and brain have attempted to detach and dissociate us to protect us from harm. We can also alternate between these reactions at different points in time even long after the traumatic event has passed. Your reactions, in turn, may also illicit confused and angry reactions with those you love as they may not understand how to respond to you or to what happened to you.
Trauma can make you feel isolated.
Although we know and can recognize that most people have experienced some type of traumatic event by the age of 18, we still may feel very isolated and lonely after the traumatic event has occurred. It may be difficult for us to talk about what we experienced and we may push away those we were previously really close to due to feeling as though no one understands what happened.
After trauma occurs, it’s important to seek adequate help. While you don’t necessarily have to tell your loved ones details of what happened to you, it may help to turn to them to help you find support for your own healing journey, such as a consultation with a therapist who specializes in trauma. Therapy can help you to have a safe environment to open up, find negative and repetitive patterns that may be keeping you from healing and moving on, build and practice effective coping skills and grounding techniques, learn to trust those around you again, and help you mend any relationships severely affected by the trauma.
Begin Working With A Miami Trauma Therapist Today
You don’t have to deal with the past effects of trauma alone. Our team of caring therapists would be happy to offer support in addressing trauma and improving the strength of your relationship. You can start your therapy journey by following these simple steps:
Reach out to get matched with a Miami therapist
Get to know our team of caring therapists
Start overcoming past trauma!
Other Services Offered with Miami Vibes Counseling
Our team is happy to offer a variety of mental health services in addition to trauma therapy. We also offer support for children, adults, parents, and families. Our services include therapy for grief, spirituality, and life transitions. Some of the techniques we use include ACT, CBT, and TF-CBT. All of these services are available both in person and through virtual therapy.
