When you're caught in a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions that feel beyond your control, it can be incredibly difficult to find a sense of calm.

Anxieties linked to childhood wounds require a nuanced approach. While revisiting those experiences can be helpful, it's crucial to acknowledge the potential for retraumatization.

We've laid a foundation by understanding how trauma impacts the brain and body, and the crucial role of resilience factors like safety, problem-solving, and connection.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, with racing thoughts and an unbearable present moment, you're not alone. That feeling of being stuck in a never-ending cycle can be incredibly distressing.

We've discussed how trauma affects our emotions and brain. But a crucial question is: what can we do to heal? Before exploring solutions, we need to understand that trauma's impact extends beyond our minds to our physical health.

A key factor in how trauma impacts us lies in our early caregiving environment. Three elements are crucial for a child's healthy development: attunement, containment, and rupture and repair.

Before we delve deeper, let's add another valuable tool to your grounding toolkit – a simple tapping technique. These activities can be used in moments of stress, overwhelm, or even as a gentle way to start or end your day, helping you anchor yourself in a state of calm.

When we experience trauma, regardless of whether it's a significant, life-altering event ("Big T" trauma) or a series of smaller, yet impactful experiences ("little t" trauma), our minds and bodies often engage in three key survival responses: fragmentation, dissociation, and isolation.

We've discussed how past trauma can continue to affect our present lives. To move forward, we need to increase our ability to process these experiences without feeling overwhelmed.