Childhood and Trauma: How Childhood Trauma May Be Impacting Your Life as an Adult
Trigger warning: This article talks about different forms of abuse.
Childhood trauma can be measured by looking at the ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences) assessment. Scores that are 4 or more are at higher risk of developing mental illnesses, addictions, and medical diseases. Our experiences growing up can have a big impact on how healthy we are as adults. If you are curious in learning more about ACEs, you can look at previous blogs posted. This article’s purpose is about how childhood experiences and trauma can show up in our adult life and ways in which individuals can counteract the impact of those traumas and experiences.
Examples of the Impact That Childhood Trauma Has on Adulthood:
In adulthood, those that experienced childhood trauma are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety, may have nightmares, flashbacks, difficulties in regulating emotions, and lower self-esteem. Childhood trauma could include being a bystander or victim in a traumatic accident, being a witness or victim of domestic violence, enduring bullying, or having experienced a catastrophic natural disaster. Since children’s brains are still developing, experiencing a traumatic experience can be especially difficult. A child may not know how to talk about what had happened or process it and as a result, may think that they are to blame in some way for what had occurred potentially.
Attachment Difficulties in Relation to Childhood Trauma:
Avoidant Attachment:
Those that experienced neglect or rejection in childhood could develop an avoidant attachment style as adults. As a child, they are taught that they cannot trust others around them to meet their needs, so they develop the idea that the only way to be safe is to remain self-sufficient and cannot rely on others. If individuals experienced abuse they may have learned that it is not safe to put trust in others as there is uncertainty in reactions towards it. Being avoidant in attachment can create difficulties in adult relationships with having that hesitancy to trust.
Anxious Attachment:
Childhood trauma can include uncertainty in the emotional reactions of caregivers. If there was emotional, or physical abuse occurring it childhood then it makes sense how anxiety can form surrounding relationships with others. There may have also been a lack of validation in these relationships growing up resulting in trying to find relationships as an adult that can provide reassurance. These individuals also exhibit a hyper-awareness of the moods of others around them.
Effective Methods for Healing Childhood Trauma That Shows up in Adulthood:
Therapy can provide a safe space for those that are ready to work on how their childhood trauma has impacted them. There are different types of therapy approaches that therapists use to help process trauma with therapy clients. When you are looking to get started in therapy you can ask more about the approach that your therapist would use. Below are some examples of therapy approaches that are utilized.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing):
This therapy helps individuals that have symptoms associated with the trauma that was experienced. It helps individuals recall traumatic experiences that may have been suppressed using bilateral eye moment.
Narrative Therapy:
Through examining life stories individuals can begin to rewrite and reframe what had happened in life due to childhood trauma.
Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques:
Progressive muscle relaxation and guided meditation can help manage the physical symptoms that are experienced in relation to the trauma. It’s important that mindfulness be used as a way to manage but not avoid feelings. Your therapist will encourage you to be curious about symptoms instead of trying to push them away or avoid them.
Begin Working with a Trauma Therapist in Charlotte, NC
The childhood experiences people experience can often affect their adult lives in different ways. Our team of caring therapists would be happy to help you cope with and overcome past pain from our Charlotte, NC-based practice. You can start your therapy journey by following these simple steps:
Fill out our contact form
Meet with a caring therapist
Start coping with past trauma
Other Services Offered With Inward Counseling
Trauma therapy isn’t the only mental health support Inward Counseling offers. Our team understands you may experience more than one mental health concern, which is why we are happy to also offer therapy for anxiety, couples, family, and EMDR. We also offer depression therapy and Christian counseling. Visit our blog or about page to learn more today.