Whether or not we have experienced trauma, understanding its impact can help us all

Although many people with TMS/mindbody conditions have not experienced what would usually be perceived to be 'trauma' in their childhoods, we are still who we are because of our experiences in life. For example: parental, cultural or religious expectations growing up can result in us developing unconscious patterns which helped us deal with things at the time, but which in later life can cause self-induced stress. Maybe these behaviours and patterns developed because we ended up not feeling 'enough' in some way because we were never quite what we were expected to be. e.g. not good/slim/quiet//clever enough etc, maybe too emotional, not emotional enough etc.

The ACE Studies

The ACE studies clearly link childhood trauma and the chronic diseases people develop as adults, as well as social and emotional problems, but even if we didn't experience toxic, ongoing trauma, understanding the impact it can have on people, can help us understand our own behaviours and personality traits, which we can then learn to address.?This link is to the ACE questionnaire?and it also provides an explanation about how this understanding can help all of us.

Understanding the impact of trauma

This little video?provides a basic introduction and overview of how trauma and chronic stress affects our nervous system and how those effects impact our health and well-being, which I thought might be interesting to share.

There's no getting away from it, our experiences in life affect us, BUT we also know that by understanding this and learning to identify and address the ways we self-sabotage, it can have a very positive impact on our health and wellbeing.