In veterans of war struggling with PTSD, meditation has been found to provide stress relief. Calming the sympathetic nervous system, where the survival instinct to fight, flight, freeze, and other responses live, helps reduce the production of stress hormones. Getting to the beneficial place of a meditation practice can take time in trauma recovery as initial experiences with meditation and mindfulness might cause discomfort.
Common experiences of trauma during meditation
Anxiety: Meditation and mindfulness practices are known to cause anxiety in people living with different issues. For example, those who live with ADD or ADHD feel anxious energy when they try to sit still and clear their mind. PTSD is highly co-occurring with anxiety as it is considered to be, in part, an anxiety disorder. With practice, meditation and mindfulness will soothe anxious tendencies acting as a coping practice rather than a trigger.Auditory disturbances: In silence, there is still a remarkable amount of sound. Deep breathing creates a vacuum of time and sound, drowning out the external world to create an awareness of the internal world. If an internal world has been affected by trauma, there can be a cacophonous soundtrack of noises associated with the trauma. Though the immediate environment is silently breathing, the internal environment might be blaring with disturbing sounds. Visual disturbances: Trauma can cause blackouts in the brain. Think of a city grid during an electricity blackout where blocks upon blocks suddenly go dark. Hidden within those memory blockages of the brain are fleeting images that cause distress. Focusing on the mind and learning to disconnect from the thoughts is helpful for processing and coping with trauma. In the beginning, meditation and mindfulness practices might create visual disturbances when the eyes are closed for prolonged periods of time.Physical hallucinations: Getting in touch with your body is what bridges the mind-body connection, making mindfulness a powerful tool. Somatic experiencing is a therapy technique used in treating trauma because it addresses the living trauma stored within the body. Mindfulness methods like body scans can trigger some of this unidentified trauma, causing physical discomfort or physical hallucinations. Physical hallucinations could mean feeling the same physical sensations from a traumatic incident.
Flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, and other uncomfortable experiences are common in the beginning of any recovery. In a safe, clinical environment, you can heal the experience of trauma and build a future of freedom, peace, and hope. The Guest House in Ocala, Florida offers the privacy, serenity, and luxury needed to fully recover from trauma, addictions, and other trauma-related issues.
Call us today for information on our residential treatment programs: 1-855-483-7800