Five Ways to Overcome Trauma-Induced Anxiety

When you've survived a traumatic experience, the anxiety that often follows can consume you for the rest of your life. Whether the traumatic event was a violent attack or a life-threatening car accident, this anxiety can occasionally develop into post-traumatic stress. Things that didn't matter before can become triggers for your anxious feelings and the smallest things can send you into a psychological downward spiral. Thankfully, mental health care has come a long way and there are a variety of treatment options for trauma-induced stress therapy. Somatic Experiencing Treatment Somatic Experiencing treatment focuses on your body's innate ability to self-heal. It targets the physical sensations you experienced during your traumatic experience. Most therapy methods focus on the thoughts and feelings surrounding the trauma, but in somatic experiencing you'll focus on the trauma-related feelings. Your survival instincts will kick in and you'll release the tension through physical efforts. Cognitive Behavior Therapy This type of therapy helps you process and evaluate the thoughts and feelings you have about the traumatic event. It won't treat the physiological effects, so it's best used in conjunction with things like somatic experiencing and EMDR. With anxiety, it will allow you to differentiate between a true feeling and what's a gross overreaction. EMDR Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing uses your natural rapid eye movement. These movements help mute the power of traumatic memories. During your appointment, the therapist will move their finger in front of your eyes and ask that you follow their finger with your eyes. They'll then ask you to recall your traumatic event before shifting into more pleasant memories. After each session, your therapist will ask you to rate your level of distress with the intention that your distress levels will decrease with every session. Exposure Therapy During exposure therapy, your therapist will have you confront the things that trigger your anxiety. Depending on your level of anxiety/trauma, you may be "flooded" with triggers or you'll gradually be introduced to them one by one. A clinical psychology student, pursuing their UF Psychology degree online, says patients in exposure therapy are taught relaxation techniques to help them cope during the confrontations. Self-Help There are plenty of things you can do outside of therapy to help ease your trauma-induced anxiety. First of all, don't isolate yourself. It's easy to stay locked in your house and avoid all contact with family and friends. Professionals agree this is detrimental to getting better. Allow your friends and family to care and use them for support. A healthy lifestyle will also aid in healing. Getting plenty of rest, a healthy diet, and avoiding cigarettes and alcohol will help you on your journey to recovery. If you've experienced a trauma that has created significant anxiety in your life, don't hesitate to seek help. There's just no logical way to get through a traumatic experience without the help of others.