Hypervigilance is a heightened state of arousal where you are excessively scanning your environment.  A lot of energy goes into looking for perceived danger as a way to protect yourself before something bad happens. 

The practice of self-compassion can help with the impact of trauma.  If you struggle with emotional regulation, self-compassion can help you acknowledge and accept your emotions without judgment.

Resiliency is the capacity to rise above adversity.  It is the ability to develop lasting strengths amid difficult or terrible struggles. It is resiliency that allows the children of troubled families to not be immobilized by hardship. 

Over the last few years, we are learning about another survival reaction of people who are struggling with trauma.  It is called the fawn response.

For a long time, mental health professionals have held on to the belief that self-esteem is a sign of ideal mental health. And yet, we are learning that there are some problems with all this emphasis on self-esteem.

For the sake of understanding it better, you can talk about two types of trauma: Big T trauma and little t trauma. The main difference between big T and little t trauma is the event that is the source of the trauma.

Nobody wants to experience a traumatic event. Trauma seems to be something imposed on you by another person or by difficult circumstances; it is not something you choose.

I am going to share a word with you, and then, I want you to just pause for a few minutes of silence and let’s see what happens: DOG.

A common symptom of trauma is the presence of flashbacks or other intrusive thoughts and feelings. Flashbacks happen when personal experiences of the past show up suddenly in your awareness with any conscious effort to bring them to mind.

In a previous blog I described five ways that you adapt to the experience of trauma. The first response is fight or vigilance.