Do you always feel like you’re on high alert? Or do you just feel numb? Perhaps you bounce back and forth between the two? Have you wondered how to feel calm or peaceful? If you find the state of the world today especially triggering, you are not alone! Fortunately, by understanding our nervous systems and… Read more »
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“People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you make them feel.” – Maya Angelou Finding hope, let alone holding hope as a thread through life these days, can seem like a tough task for so many. Trauma survivors often struggle to find or hold hope in… Read more »
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Most of us have experienced some form of trauma in our development. We may have endured what mental health professionals refer to as a “big T Trauma” like abuse, serious loss, or a life-threatening experience, or we may have examples of “little t trauma” from events that weren’t life-threatening but caused emotional distress and altered… Read more »
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When a child experiences neglect, anxiety, or danger repeatedly in a close relationship, that child often grows up with a sense that they are not okay. Psychology has a name for the longterm, consistent type of trauma that leaves a person feeling insecure, overwhelmed, and unsafe in the world: complex post-traumatic stress disorder, or CPTSD…. Read more »
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Trauma can take many forms. You may have heard of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Most people have at least heard of PTSD, as it relates to veterans. Did you know it impacts many others as well? Have you heard of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (complex PTSD or CPTSD)? People often ask how CPTSD and PTSD are… Read more »
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Understanding that trauma includes emotional injury will help more people get the care they deserve. The word trauma is so important to help those who suffer from emotional injury. Yet, people so often think of trauma as only including physical or sexual injury. Many overlook its role in their overall health and quality of life…. Read more »
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You might be standing in a room with hundred-dollar bills blowing everywhere, but if you can’t catch any, or even notice them, you won’t have any extra money in your pocket. Gratitude works the same way. If you don’t even notice the opportunity to feel gratitude or know how to catch it, then you can’t… Read more »
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Now that we are not only seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, but we are almost there and about to step out into that light, what will re-entry actually be like? Will it be all sunshine and happiness? I was on a Zoom call with a group of friends who have been… Read more »
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In this Experts at Home conversation, Dr. Christine Courtois joins Dr. Lisa Firestone to talk about the impact of both past and present trauma as well as tools to help people heal. Watch Now: Subscribe to PsychAlive (it’s free!) to see more Experts at Home.
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Two weeks ago, I was talking to a friend who has been depressed. Because of COVID-19 and her age, she is quarantined and has been unable to visit with many of her friends. As she described the details of her life and her loneliness, she broke down crying, “I don’t recognize my life! I don’t… Read more »
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