Unfortunately, I see a lot of illnesses in my office that patients don’t realize are complicated by trauma. Healing trauma has moved up to one of the top priorities in my treatment plan for my patients, especially those with chronic issues who have struggled for years.
I now understand that unresolved traumatic events shift the whole physiology of the body, especially the immune system, which goes into a mode of self-defense, which leads to it eventually not functioning correctly and attacking the body it is supposed to protect. This shift in the body’s immune system is secondary to the always-on “flight or fight” side of the nervous system, the sympathetic system. This compassionate side is triggered by our limbic system, our survival brain, which bypasses our thinking brain after the trauma. A minor thing can start our limbic system, and our whole body responds without much input from our thinking brain and sends our body into a negative cycle of inflammation and mood issues.
Fortunately, with therapy like EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) with a trained therapist or a program like www.retrainingthebrain.com, I have seen outstanding outcomes with people who could not otherwise heal. Healing from your trauma is an essential step that should not be overlooked.