{"id":268,"date":"2023-07-28T01:13:31","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T22:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/claritycounseling.co.ke\/?p=268"},"modified":"2023-07-28T01:13:31","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T22:13:31","slug":"why-childhood-trauma-could-be-causing-your-psychological-struggles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/why-childhood-trauma-could-be-causing-your-psychological-struggles\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Childhood Trauma Could be Causing Your Psychological Struggles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-269\" src=\"http:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/blog26-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"640\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h1>Why Childhood Trauma Could be Causing Your Psychological Struggles<\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As an adult, memories from your childhood shape who you are today. For some people, their childhood had good times filled with love and care. But for many others, their early years were marked by painful experiences that still affect them today. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even though the hurts happened a long time ago, the impact of childhood trauma can stay with you, affecting how you feel and behave as an adult. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the past, people wrongfully believed that childhood traumas were those that left physical marks. But countless research has proven that childhood traumas also include emotional and psychological wounds. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you have these emotional or psychological struggles as an adult and are wondering why you cannot cope with various issues. You could be having unresolved childhood traumas. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This article will discuss how childhood trauma occurs, the psychological impact it has, and how you can heal from them.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How Childhood Trauma Occurs<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Childhood trauma occurs when a child experiences distressing events or negative experiences beyond their ability to cope or understand. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The stressful events you went through as a child could be physical, emotional, or sexual in nature, and they often happen repeatedly or for an extended period. Examples of these childhood traumas include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Abuse<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: You were sexually, psychologically, or physically mistreated.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Bullying<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Your peers or even adults intimidated or demeaned you.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Domestic violence<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: You experienced it or witnessed a parent, sibling, or someone close person go through it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Life-threatening accidents or illnesses<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: These may have occurred to you or a close family member.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Sudden loss of a loved one<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: You never dealt with the loss, or you were too little to deal with it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Neglect<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Your needs for food, shelter, clothing, and emotional support were not consistently met.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Violence in school or the community: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A threat to your life or well-being occurred. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the above traumatic experiences happened to you as a child, your brain stored the memory of your psychological reactions to protect you in case something similar happened again. This process continued into adulthood such that you still stay extra alert and on guard, even when you are safe. <\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Psychological Impact of Childhood Trauma<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-5151\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/st-640x427.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As mentioned above, childhood traumas disrupt the normal brain and bodily functioning that may eventually overwhelm your ability to cope with everyday life. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It affects your emotions and behavior and extends to impact all areas of your life. The following are three psychological effects childhood traumas cause. <\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Form Insecure Attachments (Relationship Struggles)<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Undergoing traumatic experiences can impact the relationships you form. You may struggle to get close to people because you fear they might hurt or abandon you. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To protect yourself, you run away from people who may genuinely care about you because you fear being hurt like you were in the past. As a result, you end up in isolation or experiencing loneliness.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conversely, others attach to someone too much because they need to be validated, loved, and cared for because they missed it in childhood. If you fall in this category, you may have difficulty giving the person you care for space because you desperately need them to cater to your emotional needs.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Have Poor Self-Worth and Self-Esteem<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to research by Cheyenne and Aoife on ScienceDirect, childhood trauma victims <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S2468749921000375\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">experience low self-esteem<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and self-worth. A significant number also suffer from depression and anxiety at some point in their life. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This and other similar studies confirm that when a person goes through childhood trauma, they may develop negative beliefs about themselves and believe that they do not deserve to be loved, happy, or enjoy success. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further, you may also internalize and blame yourself for the traumatic events and think that you are flawed or inferior to others.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adopt Unhealthy Coping Strategies<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People who have undergone childhood trauma experience flashbacks and sometimes nightmares regarding the things they endured. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some are constantly anxious when a non-threatening event occurs, and others are afraid or easily angered by simple things. Due to these challenges, most turn to unhealthy methods to cope, such as:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Alcohol and substance abuse <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Self-harm<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Emotional avoidance<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Social withdrawal<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aggression <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Overeating or undereating<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unfortunately, these strategies provide temporary relief but worsen the psychological distress over time. Eventually leading to mental health disorders. So, how do you heal from childhood traumas?<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to Heal from Childhood Trauma<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Overcoming childhood trauma requires time and patience. The brain has the capacity to heal and adapt when appropriate coping methods are used and you have a good support system. The following are healthy strategies you can use to heal from childhood traumas.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Be kind to yourself and practice self-compassion<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recognize that your feelings and reactions to the trauma are valid and understandable.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Educate yourself about trauma\u2014which will help you understand your experiences.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Seek therapy with a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">trauma-informed counselor<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> who can help you process painful memories, manage difficult emotions, and learn coping strategies.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Identify triggers and set boundaries.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pray and seek guidance from God<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At Clarity Counseling Center, we understand the unique challenges individuals face when healing from childhood traumas. You will receive help from empathetic and experienced counselors specializing in childhood trauma therapy in Kenya. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We are also dedicated to providing personalized treatment plans tailored to your specific needs. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Contact us today<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and let us help you overcome childhood traumas. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover the impact of childhood trauma on your psychological well-being. Learn the link between childhood trauma and psychological struggles and ways to heal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2050,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=268"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2050"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbuilds.site\/sp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}