According to “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder” from the World Health Organization (WHO), around 70% of people will experience a traumatic event, and approximately 3.9% will experience PTSD in their lifetime. Further, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) notes, that 6 of every 100 people of Americans will experience PTSD. Yet, what is trauma, what does it mean to have trauma, or what does trauma look like? Trauma comes in many forms, from sexual assault and war to emotional neglect and grief that can disrupt well-being. Thus, understanding the impact of trauma can support healing the nervous system and the whole person in recovery.
At The Guest House, we know trauma’s impact can leave you feeling stuck in survival mode. Your survival mode is that well-known phrase “fight-or-flight”. In fight-or-flight, your brain and body tell you to stay and fight or flee a threatening or frightening situation. Thus, your fight-or-flight response is an automatic physiological reaction stimulated by the nervous system going into overdrive. However, when your body is overwhelmed by trauma and its accompanying symptoms, you can get stuck in survival mode. You end up feeling like you are constantly fighting to survive every moment of the day.
When you are overwhelmed and exhausted, it becomes more difficult to maintain and build resilience to everyday stressors. Therefore, you may turn to self-defeating behaviors like self-medicating with substances to cope with distressing trauma symptoms. However, trauma does not have to take over your life. Healing the nervous system can help you address the physical and psychological symptoms of trauma to recover. We can support healing the nervous system and you as a whole person through a commitment to holistic trauma-specific care.
However, you may question how healing the nervous system can support trauma recovery. What does the nervous system have to do with trauma? Trauma is not only found in physical scars and disabilities or disproportionate emotional responses. Rather, trauma is also deeply bound up in the dysregulation of physiological functioning like stomach and sleep issues. Thus, healing the nervous system can be a vital part of the recovery process for whole person healing. Increasing your understanding of the nervous system and its relationship to trauma can support long-term recovery.
Understanding the Relationship Between Trauma and the Nervous System
Healing the nervous system from the physiological symptoms of trauma starts with understanding the nervous system. As the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) states, the nervous system is a complex collection of all the nerve cells in your body. The billions of nerve cells in your body are also known as neurons. Moreover, the billions of nerve cells or neurons each have their own cell body and extensions. Your neurons include short extensions called dendrites and long extensions called axons. The dendrite extensions act like antennae as they receive signals from other neurons, while axons pass those signals along.
Moreover, the nervous system can be broken into two parts, the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The CNS includes all the nerves in the brain and spinal cord, whereas the PNS is made up of all the other nerves in the body. Further, both the CNS and PNS have voluntary and involuntary parts. The voluntary or somatic nervous system controls all the functions that you are consciously aware of like muscle movement. Thus, the CNS and PNS coordinate together to enact bodily movements like eating and walking.
Whereas the involuntary nervous system or autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulates functions that you cannot consciously influence like breathing. The involuntary system receives signals from the CNS in the brain to the body and vice versus. Listed below are the three parts of the involuntary nervous system:
- Sympathetic nervous system (SNS)
- Prepares the body for physical and mental activity
- Makes your heart beat faster and stronger
- Opens airways for easier breathing
- Inhibits digestion
- Prepares the body for physical and mental activity
- Parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS)
- Manages bodily functions when you are at rest
- Stimulates digestion
- Activates metabolic processes
- Converting food and drinks into energy
- Supports relaxation
- Manages bodily functions when you are at rest
- The enteric (gastrointestinal) nervous system (ENS)
- Focuses on controlling many of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract
- Blood flow regulation
- Gut hormone release
- Focuses on controlling many of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract
In the CNS, the voluntary and involuntary systems are closely linked to each other, whereas the PNS parts are separated from each other. Yet, the CNS and PNS have jobs that help control your body and communicate with the rest of the world. The CNS regulates the body by sending motor commands from the brain to the body. Moreover, the CNS relays sensory information from sensory nerves to the body. While the PNS sends information from the body to the brain and carries out commands from the brain to function.
Looking at the many elements and functions of the nerves system highlights its importance to your ability to function. Thus, healing the nervous system becomes of paramount concern when it is impaired by trauma. Yet, how does trauma impact the nervous system to make the need for healing the nervous system a reality? Responses to trauma can vary based on individual protective factors and risk factors in an individual’s life. However, as noted in Complex Psychiatry, exposure to certain traumas can be sex-specific and contribute to differences in harm.
Greater awareness of gendered experiences highlights the different types of traumas males and females experience and how they impact them:
- Males are more likely to experience non-sexual assault and combat-related trauma
- More likely to experience exposure to trauma
- Lower rates of PTSD
- Females are more likely to experience sexual assault and childhood sexual abuse
- Less likely to experience exposure to trauma
- Higher rates of PTSD
Therefore, traumas tied to physiological distress with or without physical trauma can contribute to nervous system dysregulation. As Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience notes, becoming psychologically traumatized can contribute to dysregulation and functional impairment of the nervous system. Further, experiencing trauma, especially during developmental phases, contributes to overwhelming amounts of stress that dysregulate your biological stress systems. Through trauma, you experience physical and psychological distress that leaves you stuck in the fight-or-flight response. Your nervous system overreacts to different situations such as PTSD symptoms like hypervigilance and feeling on edge.
Thus, trauma makes it difficult to effectively respond to stressors in your life as you develop long-lasting maladaptive responses. Now you can recognize healing the nervous system as an important aspect of healing from PTSD. However, healing the nervous system also becomes important for other disorders impacted by trauma. Some of the different disorders that are affected by trauma and can be supported by healing the nervous system include:
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Anxiety disorders
- Substance use disorder (SUD)
Therefore, understanding the relationship between OCD and trauma can support healing the nervous system.
Addressing OCD and Trauma for Healing the Nervous System
According to Medline Plus, OCD is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by uncontrollable recurring thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors or rituals (compulsions). Moreover, the symptoms of OCD are rooted in your brain and nervous system. The structure and function of your brain are tied to OCD in brain differences for individuals with OCD. Further, PTSD commonly co-occurs with OCD. As noted by the VA, 1 in 4 individuals with PTSD will also experience OCD. The relationship between co-occurring OCD and PTSD is most often associated with a phenomenon known as trauma-related OCD.
Trauma-related OCD typically develops following trauma, showcasing the need for healing the nervous system for OCD rooted in trauma. The VA notes that 10.6% of individuals diagnosed with PTSD developed OCD concurrently or after PTSD, whereas 4.1% of individuals had an OCD diagnosis before their PTSD diagnosis. A diagnosis of OCD before, concurrently, or after developing PTSD is important to exposure to traumatic events. According to Frontiers in Psychiatry, many cases of late-onset OCD are rooted in experiencing traumatic incidents. Early-onset OCD is also tied to experiencing traumatic incidents in which you lack the neurodevelopmental traits and tolerance needed to adapt to significant stress.
Moreover, the overlap of OCD and trauma-related distress is found in how you think and react to the intrusive thoughts present in both OCD and PTSD. The need for healing the nervous system becomes apparent in psychological functioning as the distress of trauma and OCD highlight a disruption in brain functioning. Further, similar impairments to thinking found in the dysfunction of the CNS have also been seen in anxiety disorders.
Understanding Anxiety and Trauma for Healing the Nervous System
According to “Anxiety” by Suma P. Chand and Raman Marwaha, anxiety is fear and worry that manifest as a future-oriented mood state. In this future-oriented mood state, all your cognitive, affective, physiological, and behavioral response systems are geared toward preparing and anticipating threatening events and circumstances. Much like OCD, other types of anxiety disorders like generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) are an automatic neurophysiological state of alarm that is characterized as your fight-or-flight response. Then concerning trauma, anxiety and traumatic experiences are deeply interconnected as anxiety is a common symptom of trauma.
Following a traumatic event or prolonged exposure to trauma, you are left feeling that anxious apprehension of the trauma happening again, whether real or imagined. Thus, excessive amounts of anxiety can disrupt your ability to manage and effectively respond to stress. The need for healing the nervous system is clear in anxiety disorders as it impairs many parts of the nervous system’s functioning. Listed below are some of the systems that are impeded by anxiety:
SNS
- The SNS activates and controls your fight-or-flight response
- Your SNS response to perceived danger or stress is reflected in bodily responses
- Increased heart rate
- Enlarged pupils
- Anxiety can stress your SNS which controls functions like heart rate and blood pressure
- Increases your risk for physical health issues
- Your SNS response to perceived danger or stress is reflected in bodily responses
Digestive System
- The organs in the body that support the digestion of food and liquids
- Your digestive system which includes body parts like the mouth, throat, and stomach is impacted by anxiety and trauma
- Stomachaches
- Nausea
- Loss of appetite
- Your digestive system which includes body parts like the mouth, throat, and stomach is impacted by anxiety and trauma
Cardiovascular System
- The system that makes up your heart and blood vessels to supply your body with oxygen and nutrients to function
- Anxiety can disrupt functioning to cause a rapid heart rate, palpitations, and chest pain
- Chronic anxiety can increase your risk for physical health issues
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease
Immune System
- A complex system of tissues, organs, and cells like white blood cells that helps your body fight infections and diseases
- When anxiety triggers your fight-or-flight response, a flood of chemicals and hormones, like adrenaline are released into your system
- A flood of adrenaline is useful in typical moments of distress to prepare your body to appropriately respond
- Chronic anxiety in anxiety disorders and PTSD never signals your body to stop flooding it with fight-or-flight chemicals and hormones
- When your body is unable to return to regular functioning, it increases the risk of a weak immune system
- When anxiety triggers your fight-or-flight response, a flood of chemicals and hormones, like adrenaline are released into your system
Respiratory System
- The system includes body parts like lungs, diaphragm, nose, throat, and mouth to maintain breathing
- Anxiety can have a direct impact on your ability to breathe effectively, which can lead to lightheadedness and worsen symptoms related to respiratory conditions like asthma
- Rapid and shallow breathing
- Hyperventilation
- Lightheadedness
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Anxiety can have a direct impact on your ability to breathe effectively, which can lead to lightheadedness and worsen symptoms related to respiratory conditions like asthma
Looking at the many ways anxiety and trauma impede the nervous system speaks to the interconnected nature of the mind and body. Trauma is often reflected in the body, both physically and psychologically. The physical and psychological consequences of trauma can be further seen in SUD.
Dismantling SUD and Trauma for Healing the Nervous System
SUD is often a reflection of maladaptive coping through self-medication. You may misuse substances to distract yourself from your trauma and the distress of co-occurring mental health disorders like social anxiety. The overwhelming nature of your traumatic distress makes it difficult to address the negative thoughts and feelings trauma fosters. Through self-medicating a temporary illusion that makes you think you are feeling better is created.
Not only do the false positive feelings of substance use disappear, but over time it exacerbates those distressing feelings. Thus, a greater understanding of addiction as a medical and mental health condition has highlighted the impact of addiction on the brain and the nervous system. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services (HSS), addiction is driven by changes in the brain that prolong substance use. In particular, the basal ganglia, the extended amygdala, and the prefrontal cortex within the complex nervous system are impacted by addiction.
Listed below are some of the ways addiction disrupts parts of the nervous system:
- Difficulty with substance-related cues that trigger substance-seeking behavior
- Reduced sensitivity to brain systems that impact the pleasure or reward centers
- Heightened activation of your brain’s stress systems
- Impaired functioning of your brain’s executive control systems
- Impedes your ability to make decisions
- It impairs your ability to regulate your actions, emotions, and impulse control
The relationship between trauma, the nervous system, and a variety of mental health impairments speaks to the need for whole-person care in recovery. With holistic whole-person care, healing the nervous system makes supporting recovery at every intersection of your well-being possible. Therefore, access to a variety of mind-body therapies and modalities like somatic experiencing (SE), eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), and brainspotting are invaluable to trauma recovery.
Healing Trauma With Holistic Support at the Guest House
At The Guest House, we believe in providing a highly personalized treatment plan to address your specific recovery needs. We know trauma is often at the root of various mind-body challenges and disorders like SUD and other mental health disorders like anxiety disorders. With a holistic and trauma-specific approach to care, you can discover the tools you need to thrive in recovery. Therefore, we provide comprehensive therapies and holistic modalities like SE, EMDR, and brainspotting to meet you where you are on your recovery journey.
Therapies like SE, EMDR, and brainspotting recognize the way the brain and body works in tandem together through the nervous system to function. Thus, when trauma causes impairments, access to an individualized treatment plan with a wide range of therapeutic modalities can support healing the nervous system for whole-person recovery. With access to a variety of accessible mind-body interventions, trauma can no longer hold your body and mind hostage. Therefore, we are committed to providing a variety of support tools that give you the space and support you need to lead a fulfilling life in long-term recovery.
Trauma can harm your physical and psychological well-being. When left unaddressed, trauma can overwhelm your nervous system and leave you stuck in survival mode. The presence of challenges with conditions like OCD, anxiety, and SUD, highlights the extent of the mind-body harm trauma can wreak. Thus, healing the nervous system is an important part of healing and recovery from trauma and self-defeating patterns like substance misuse. Looking at trauma as a mind and body issue means engaging in mind-body therapies and modalities to support healing as a whole person. At The Guest House, we are committed to providing trauma-specific interventions and holistic individualized treatment plans to meet you where you are. Call (855) 483-7800 to learn more today.