Treating and Healing From Childhood Trauma in Adulthood

Every day millions of people experience the effects of childhood trauma well into their adult lives. You can live many years unknowingly affected by adverse childhood experiences and suddenly your childhood trauma reveals itself in ugly, unexpected ways. The effects of childhood trauma can be devastating or even life-threatening.

Childhood trauma is not always caused by physical, emotional, or sexual abuse and is often caused by things like maltreatment or neglect, a harmful living environment, being a victim of bullying, a sudden or violent death of a loved one, or even experiencing a natural disaster in early childhood or adolescence. Childhood trauma in adults can adversely affect your relationships, self-esteem, career, mental health, and even physical health.

Here at Blue Agave Therapy and Wellness, treating childhood trauma is a big priority. We want you to know you are not alone and we are here to be a resource and offer therapy to get you on track to overcoming childhood trauma in healthy ways. In this blog, we will explore the following:

• What is childhood trauma

• Types of childhood trauma

• How childhood trauma manifests in adulthood

• Effective ways to address childhood trauma

What is childhood trauma?

Children who suffer from childhood trauma have been exposed to one or more traumas over the course of their lives and develop reactions and symptoms that persist and affect their daily lives long after the events have ended. Symptoms of childhood trauma can include things such as:

• intense and sudden ongoing emotional changes

• depression or anxiety disorder

• behavioral changes

• difficulties with self-regulation

• trouble forming healthy relationships

• regression or loss of previously acquired skills

• attention and academic difficulties

• nightmares

• difficulty sleeping and eating

• physical symptoms, such as aches and pains

• Adolescents and teens may turn to substances like drugs or alcohol, engage in risky behaviors, or engage in unhealthy sexual activity

Types of childhood trauma:

Often when people think of childhood trauma, they think of physical abuse, emotional abuse, or sexual abuse. Of course, these are not to be made light of; the trauma caused by any one of those types of abuse is absolutely devastating or even life-threatening to a person’s well-being, mental, and even physical health and must be addressed and worked through.

There are many more types of childhood trauma that can have lasting effects on a person physically and emotionally. Other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) that often go overlooked or don’t get the attention they deserve include:

• maltreatment

• abuse

• neglect

• living in a harmful environment

It is important to be familiar with the different types of trauma and recognize the symptoms of trauma in order to find the right resources to help you form an action plan to heal from childhood trauma and find the freedom to finally let go, overcome childhood trauma, and live a happy, healthy life.

How childhood trauma manifests in adulthood 

Childhood trauma has a way of following you into your adult life. You may not notice it for many years, but when it manifests, it can be traumatizing all over again. Often trauma stemming from early childhood rears its ugly head well into adulthood. Childhood trauma in adults manifests in different ways, and everyone deals with symptoms of trauma differently. Unresolved childhood trauma in adults can cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic attacks, and many other significant health problems. It is important to recognize and heal from childhood trauma, otherwise, it can begin to affect areas of life, including:

• Difficulty forming healthy relationships: When relationships are unstable or unpredictable for a child, it teaches them that they cannot rely on others to be there for them. When caregivers exploit and abuse a child, the child learns that he or she is bad and the world is a dangerous place. Many people who suffer from childhood trauma find difficulty trusting people, even friends and loved ones as an adult.

• Low self-esteem: Abuse and neglect make children feel worthless and hopeless, and they often blame themselves. They absorb the feeling that they are bad and must not be worthy of love. It can feel safer to blame themselves than it is to recognize or admit their parent, family members, or caregiver are unsafe. Shame, guilt, low self-esteem, and a poor self-image are common among adults who have complex childhood trauma histories.

• Mental health: When caregivers exploit and abuse a child, the child learns that he or she is bad and they believe the world is a bad, unsafe place. They will carry feelings of shame and guilt. Adults who suffer from trauma often suffer from mental illnesses such as anxiety disorders and depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.

• Physical health: Childhood trauma can lead to chronic stress, which can trigger inflammation and other physical responses that can damage the body and cause a number of health conditions including chronic pain, heart disease, and autoimmune disorders. Survivors of domestic violence may have lifelong physical injuries or scars from their abuse.

Effective therapy processes to heal childhood trauma

Survivors of trauma turn to many different coping mechanisms in an attempt to overcome childhood trauma. Too often people turn to self-harm to lessen or numb the pain they feel dealing with traumatic memories and feelings they don’t understand. Many people develop a substance use disorder trying to cope with unresolved trauma.

It takes hard work to heal from childhood trauma, but you don’t have to do it alone. It is important to talk to loved ones or friends or join a support group. Having a support system will help you tenfold in healing. Never be ashamed to seek professional help to work through these issues. Seek a therapist you feel comfortable opening up to. They will be able to help you fi the ndright treatment options.

There are many different types of therapy that can be helpful for treating childhood trauma. Some common approaches include Cognitive processing therapy (CPT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), Prolonged Exposure (PE), and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) We will discuss these a little more here:

1. Cognitive processing therapy (CPT): A specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy that has been effective in reducing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD that has developed after experiencing traumatic events including child abuse, combat, sexual assault, and natural disasters.

2. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing EMDR: A structured therapy that encourages the patient to focus on the traumatic memory while also experiencing bilateral stimulation (typically eye movements), which can help reduce the vividness and negative emotions associated with the traumatic memories.

3. Narrative exposure therapy (NET): A treatment for trauma, particularly for people suffering from complex and multiple trauma. It has been used in community settings and with individuals who have experienced trauma as a result of political, cultural, or social issues.

4. Prolonged Exposure (PE): Prolonged exposure teaches people to gradually approach their traumatic memories, feelings, and situations. People naturally want to avoid anything that reminds them of the trauma they experienced, but doing this reinforces their fears. By facing fears, a person can decrease symptoms of PTSD by learning that the traumatic memories and cues are not dangerous and do not need to be avoided.

5. Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): A form of psychological treatment that has been demonstrated to be effective for treating things such as depression, anxiety disorders, substance abuse, relationship problems, eating disorders, and severe mental illness. Many research studies suggest that CBT leads to improvement in behavioral health and better quality of life. CBT focuses on the current problems and symptoms. It uses trauma-sensitive interventions with behavioral methods and the help of loved ones for support.

Helpful next steps

Unfortunately, childhood trauma is very common and it can have short-term or long-lasting effects and cause health issues in adults. It is not easy to overcome childhood trauma, but it is important to remember there is help available for those who have experienced trauma. A good place to start is to seek out mental health professionals in your area. It is important to find a therapist trained in working with trauma survivors and someone you feel comfortable opening up to.

If you are looking for therapy and wellness services, Cassie Uribe, LICSW, owner of Blue Agave Therapy and Wellness, offers telehealth services in Arizona or Washington State and in-person services in Arizona. She specializes in working with women navigating mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, ADHD and trauma.

If you are interested in more content, download Cassie’s Imposter Syndrome Journal (link TBA) and schedule a free 15-minute consultation (link TBA).