Traumatic memories rerouted and hidden away Memories are usually stored in distributed brain networks including the cortex, and can thus be readily accessed to consciously remember an event.
Dissociative amnesia occurs when a person blocks out certain events, often associated with stress or trauma, leaving the person unable to remember important personal information. Outlook / Prognosis.
Intense Fear or Hypervigilance:
Sometimes people experience unexplained fears. This can include people or places. This often results in hypervigilance and a constant feeling of being on guard. Both fear and hypervigilance are clear indicators of unprocessed trauma.
Childish reactions may be a sign that you're dealing with repressed childhood memories. It could be that you throw tantrums, speak in a child-like voice, or are stubborn about small things. These regular regressions are all indicative that you have memories you haven't unlocked.
Not remembering trauma can be a coping mechanism, which is when the brain protects someone from experiencing the intense feelings associated with memory. So instead of a clear, detailed memory, someone may have gaps or only remember vague sensory aspects, like a color or smell.
Unpredictable emotions, flashbacks, relationship problems and physical symptoms like headaches or nausea are some of the ways that unresolved trauma can manifest, according to the American Psychological Association.
If the trauma is left untreated, one can experience nightmares, insomnia, anxiety, depression, phobias, substance abuse, panic attacks, anger, irritability, or hopelessness.
It disrupts your memory storage processes and changes the way your brain works. Trauma left untreated can have a big impact on your future health. Trauma can lead to physical and emotional distress, which can lead to more serious health conditions, such as heart attack, stroke, obesity, diabetes, and cancer.
The symptoms of unresolved trauma may include, among many others, addictive behaviors, an inability to deal with conflict, anxiety, confusion, depression or an innate belief that we have no value.
Trauma Blocking: Driven to Distract After a painful experience, some people may choose to face their feelings head-on while others would rather forget. The latter can manifest as trauma blocking, where someone chooses to block and drown out painful feelings that hang around after an ordeal.
For some people, the tremors are big movements in the muscles. For others, they are tiny contractions that feel like electrical frequencies moving through the body. TRE® is not painful—in fact, most people enjoy the sensations.
Mood Swings & Chronic Stress
Many survivors will experience strong emotions, mood swings, and overwhelming stress. Experts believe that this is largely because trauma can rewire the developing brain, affecting regions associated with stress, fear, and emotion regulation.
Trauma is not physically held in the muscles or bones — instead, the need to protect oneself from perceived threats is stored in the memory and emotional centers of the brain, such as the hippocampus and amygdala.
Brain areas implicated in the stress response include the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. Traumatic stress can be associated with lasting changes in these brain areas. Traumatic stress is associated with increased cortisol and norepinephrine responses to subsequent stressors.
So, these three parts of the brain- the amygdala, the hippocampus, and the prefrontal cortex- are the most-affected areas of the brain from emotional trauma. They can make a trauma survivor constantly fearful, especially when triggered by events and situations that remind them of their past trauma.
Unresolved trauma puts people at increased risk for mental health diagnoses, which run the gamut of anxiety, depression and PTSD. There are physical manifestations as well, such as cardiovascular problems like high blood pressure, stroke or heart attacks.
Delayed responses to trauma can include persistent fatigue, sleep disorders, nightmares, fear of recurrence, anxiety focused on flashbacks, depression, and avoidance of emotions, sensations, or activities that are associated with the trauma, even remotely.
Trauma happens to everyone.
It can be physical, mental, or emotional. Many do not realize they have had a traumatic experience because most believe “a trauma” is only something dramatic or changes their world entirely.
If you can recall times when you've overreacted, and perhaps have even been surprised at your own reactions, this may be a sign of trauma. It's not uncommon for people suffering from emotional trauma to have feelings of shame and self-blame.
Unhealed childhood trauma wounds are the emotional and psychological wounds that can be caused by experiences or relationships during our formative years. They can be caused by a variety of traumatic events, such as physical, verbal or sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment, or even just feeling unloved or misunderstood.
Yes, although PTSD can manifest as other mental illnesses, including anxiety and depression, sometimes it can be hidden in avoidance and numbness. It's easy to note a brave soldier coming from war with flashbacks of the combat experiences.
Sadness: If you notice that you or a loved one is feeling down much more often, it may be a sign that they're coping with a traumatic event. Losing interest in normal activities: A child may lose interest in things they once enjoyed.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Children and adolescents with PTSD have symptoms such as persistent, frightening thoughts and memories or flashbacks of a traumatic event or events.
Dissociative amnesia is a disorder characterized by retrospectively reported memory gaps. These gaps involve an inability to recall personal information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature.