Low Self-esteem
Trauma & Anxiety
Details
Trauma can be thought of as 'big T' and 'little T'. A big trauma might look like; torture, abuse, rape, an accident or witnessing a traumatic event. Whereby it is most likely that all of us have experienced little trauma's, such a humiliating event in our younger years, this often happens within the school setting and when we think about it, we can still feel the connected emotions. Trauma is very individualised, what can be a trauma for someone, is not for someone else and it can very much depend on how we have processed it. So if the trauma's emotions still feel real, then this may mean they have not been processed.
Signs of Trauma
- feeling as if the trauma is happening right now
- flashbacks (thinking about the trauma without meaning to)
- repeated dreams of the traumatic event
- trying to avoid thinking about the event and/or avoiding any external reminders
- having trouble remembering important parts of the event
- having strong negative feelings, such as fear, horror, anger, guilt or shame
- doing things that might cause you harm (like driving too fast)
- no longer doing the things you used to enjoy
- in addition see signs of anxiety below
Anxiety is something everyone experiences from time to time, and feeling anxious is a perfectly natural reaction to certain situations as we need anxiety to keep us safe and to motivate us. Anxiety only becomes a problem when our worries are out of proportion with relatively harmless situations, and then we may find that life is being impacted by worries, anxiety and avoidances.
Common anxiety disorders:
- Generalised anxiety
- Social anxiety
- Health anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Phobias
- Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Signs of Anxiety
- Feeling nervous, restless or tense
- A sense of impending danger, panic or doom
- Increased heart rate
- lack of focus and feeling confused
- Breathing rapidly (hyperventilation)
- Sweating
- Trembling
- Feeling weak or tired
- Unexplained aches and pains
- Trouble concentrating or focusing
- Sleep disturbances
- Gastrointestinal (GI) problems
- Overthinking
- Having difficulty controlling worry
- Avoidance
