Trauma

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Trauma is an injury - not a disorder. Trauma can heal.

Kinds of Trauma include: Physical, Emotional, Social, Relational, Generational, Psychological, Vicarious...

Trauma results from any event that overwhelms a person’s capacity to cope. This is true whether the trauma is quick -- as in a car accident, or slowly accumulated over time -- including prolonged social isolation. 

Response to a traumatic event varies significantly among individuals, but there are some basic, common symptoms.

Emotional signs can include:

• sadness
• anger
• denial
• fear
• shame

These may lead to:

• nightmares
• insomnia
• difficulty with relationships
• emotional outbursts

Common physical symptoms:

• nausea
• dizziness
• altered sleep patterns
• changes in appetite
• headaches
• gastrointestinal problems

Psychological disorders may include:

• PTSD
• depression
• anxiety
• dissociative disorders
• substance abuse

BCST is a trauma informed therapy using a somatic approach

“Traumatic symptoms are not caused by the triggering event itself. They stem from the frozen residue of energy that has not been resolved and discharged in the nervous system” ~ Peter Levine

When our capacity to defend ourselves by flight, fight, or freeze is not successful, we stay stuck in survival mode and we develop symptoms of trauma. The light and joy seems to go out of our life. By releasing the held impacts of trauma with BCST, we invite light and joy back in and open the door to our body's ability to heal. A natural state of calm, balance and harmony returns. The result is trauma resolution.

Dissociation and acceleration creates suffering 

Unprocessed pain keeps our system of self-preservation on permanent alert. Whether or not there is any actual danger present, a wide range of situations, many non-threatening, may activate the alarmingly high levels of pain and fear stored in our body. We feel absolutely at risk and compelled to find a way to get away from the pain.

In order to make it through such sudden and severe pain, victims of trauma typically dissociate from their bodies, numbing their sensitivity to physical sensations. Some people feel “unreal,” as if they have left their body and are experiencing life from a great distance. They do whatever they can to keep from feeling the raw sensations of fear and pain in their body. They might lash out in aggression or freeze in depression or confusion. They might have suicidal thoughts or drink themselves senseless. They may accelerate by keeping busy, overeat or starve themselves, use drugs, obsess, or in other ways try to numb or control their experience. Yet the pain and fear don’t go away.

Trauma Resolution with BCST

BCST is a process individualized to each person and their uniqueness. This process involves:

*Resources - Developing resources to access a sense of safety and support. This helps neutralize over-arousal in the nervous system. 

*Felt sense – Helps you to develop a relationship with your body and track your experience in your body. This counters both dissociation and hyper-vigilance.

*Release – Releasing the trauma that is stuck in the body. This leads to re-connection of mind and body. This re-connection can alleviate other symptoms which have crept up due to being out of balance from the trauma in the first place. More importantly, balance can be restored without re-traumatizing. Healing can occur.