Healing from trauma looks like a gradual shift from survival mode to living, marked by decreased triggers, better emotional regulation, improved physical symptoms (like better sleep/breathing), increased self-compassion, healthier relationships (leaning into interdependence), and the ability to process memories without being overwhelmed, moving from feeling stuck to feeling more grounded and hopeful. It's a personal journey, not linear, where the trauma's control lessens, allowing for growth and new meaning.
The duration of trauma depends on various factors, such as the severity of the traumatic event, your age at the time of the trauma, and the support you receive after the trauma. Some people may recover from trauma within a few months, while others may require years of therapy and support to fully recover.
Having greater mental and emotional presence
Another term for it is mentalization, or 'holding mind in mind', whether yours or someone else's. People who are healing from trauma begin to have greater access and awareness of their inner lives, and what it feels like to be themselves across different experiences.
The five stages of trauma
Recovery is an individual experience and will be and look different for everyone. In general recovery is the ability to live in the present without being overwhelmed by the thoughts and feelings of the past. Central to the experience of trauma is helplessness, isolation and the loss of power and control.
7 Clear Signs Your Body Is Releasing Stored Trauma
One of the hardest parts of trauma therapy is revisiting painful memories. This is not simply about remembering; it's an emotionally charged process that can overwhelm the client, especially early on. While essential for healing, this process must be handled with structure and consistent support.
What Should I Not do When Recovering from Trauma?
It won't rid you of PTSD and your fears, but let your tears flow and you'll maybe feel a little better afterwards. 'Crying for long periods of time releases oxytocin and endogenous opioids, otherwise known as endorphins. These feel-good chemicals can help ease both physical and emotional pain.
The belief is emotions and traumatic experiences can become trapped in the body, and somatic therapy helps release this pent-up tension and emotions. Somatic therapy uses body awareness, breathwork and movement exercises to be more aware of bodily sensations and release stored emotions.
This can happen slowly, subtly, or all at once, through signs like shaking, crying, or spontaneous muscle relaxation. Certain experiences or practices can also prompt this release. These might include deep breathing, meditation, gentle movement, somatic therapy, or even just being in a supportive environment.
5 Signs You May Be Struggling With Unresolved Trauma (And What You Can Do About It)
Consolidation and resolution is the final stage of trauma recovery, where your goal will be to work toward fully integrating your traumatic experiences into your personal narrative or life story and finding a sense of closure.
Here are 10 signs that indicate you are on the path to recovery from its effects:
Trauma is when we experience very stressful, frightening or distressing events that are difficult to cope with or out of our control. It could be one incident, or an ongoing event that happens over a long period of time.
Treatment for Unhealed Trauma
Common treatments for PTSD include trauma-informed therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). Trauma-informed therapy can provide a supportive and gentle approach when you walk into your therapist's office.
Why does processing trauma make you tired? It takes considerable cognitive and emotional energy to unpack trauma. This is because the process shifts the part of the brain that helps you process emotions, recall memories, and detect potential threats into overdrive.
The 'fight or flight' response is how people sometimes refer to our body's automatic reactions to fear. There are actually 5 of these common responses, including 'freeze', 'flop' and 'friend', as well as 'fight' or 'flight'.
Include plenty of healthy fats coming from extra virgin olive oil, avocado, oily fish, nuts and seeds. Enjoy a wide variety of foods. Include moderate amounts of lean sources of protein, such as fish and seafood, white meat (chicken and turkey), and small amounts of lean red meat (beef, lamb and pork)
While all traumas leave a profound mark on an individual's life, there's a different level of difficulty in recovering from what's called "complex trauma." Unlike single-incident traumas, complex trauma stems from repeated experiences of stressful and traumatic events, usually in environments where there's no escape.
Trauma dumping occurs when an individual shares their traumatic experiences without the recipient's consent, often at inappropriate times or places. This act can place undue emotional pressure on someone who may not be prepared or able to process such intense information.
The "3 C's of Trauma" usually refer to Connect, Co-Regulate, and Co-Reflect, a model for trauma-informed care focusing on building safe relationships, helping individuals manage overwhelming emotions (co-regulation), and processing experiences (co-reflection). Other "3 C's" include Comfort, Conversation, and Commitment for children's coping, and Catch, Check, Change from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for challenging negative thoughts in trauma recovery.
Here are six areas where trauma is stored in your body and how it shows up:
Healing from trauma requires working with both the mind and body. It means processing traumatic memories, challenging negative beliefs, and releasing stored emotions. With support and self-compassion, it is possible to rewire your brain and build healthier relationships.
There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to emotional healing, just like there is no “right” way to grieve after loss. But in my experience, emotional healing happens in seven stages: awareness, acceptance, processing, release, growth, integration, and transformation.