Trauma Body Recovery: How to Build Healthy Self-Protection

By April Lyons MA, LPC

Trauma body recover is possible."Your mental health is a priority. Happiness is an essential. Your self-care is a necessity.” If you suffered a traumatic event, you may be trying to push through it. Or you may be unaware and simply stuffing the pain. Whatever the circumstances, trauma can distort your ability to gauge your own wellbeing. In short, given our current age of uncertainty and social unrest, much of the world is suffering. As a result, many of us may feel traumatized and anxious.

Trauma often overwhelms the sense of safety and self-esteem that fosters self-care. Hence, the decision-making that would support physical health and emotional safety is often terribly damaged. On the whole, post-trauma recovery is a multi-faceted effort. Overall, it must involve what is called trauma body recovery.

The Profound Impact of Trauma on Our Bodies

Trauma is a fearsome opponent. It can manifest differently for each person. Even so, there are some general physical symptoms to watch for. These include:

  • Rapid heart rate

  • Insomnia

  • High blood pressure

  • Fluctuating blood sugar level

  • Extreme perspiration

  • Unexplained aches, pains, and muscle tension

  • Increased startle reflex

In the long run, as these and other stress-related conditions become chronic, their negative impact grows amplified and more deeply entrenched.

What is Trauma Body Recovery?

Basically, trauma body recovery is geared toward the physical symptoms of a traumatic experience. Therefore, to understand such healing, the concept of “mind-body” is key. Beyond the recognized connection, there’s a deeper perspective. That is: Your body and mind are significantly intertwined. In fact, the two aren't healthy without each other. With this in mind, trauma body recovery is an inevitable component of your treatment. Trauma body recovery is also an invaluable aspect of self-care.

5 Ways to Build Healthy Self-Protection After Trauma

1. Practice Mindfulness

Trauma teaches us to relive the past and fear the future. On the other hand, mindfulness practices teach us to embrace the present moment. Therefore, mindfulness can be cultivated via meditation, breathwork, and various grounding exercises. The goal is to remain present, aware, and nonjudgmental. To embrace just "being."

2. Move Your Body

Never underestimate the healing power of exercise and activity. Get moving each day to experience:

  • Elevated mood

  • Decreased physical symptoms

  • A deeper connection with your body’s needs

3. Rest Your Body

Balance is key to a healthy body. All in all, be sure to match daily activity levels with sufficient recovery time. Spend time relaxing in a natural setting. In addition, visualization may help you relax and recharge.

4. Honor Your Body

To remind your body just how important it is, it’s useful to treat it with care. Try the following:

  • Do a full-body stretch every day (twice a day, if possible).

  • Develop some form of aromatherapy. Consider incense, essential oils, or candles that soothe you.

  • Enjoy more baths.

  • Practice breathing exercises daily.

  • Nurture your body with nutrition and hydration.

5. Listen to Your Body

Most of all, to deepen the mind-body connection, you must hear what your body is telling you. With this in mind, try a daily body scan. So as to, get in touch with how your body reacts and holds trauma-related tension. Sometimes this means reaching out to determine whether you need help processing trauma. Or you may need help setting better boundaries for yourself and others.

Learn More About Trauma Body Recovery

Remember, after trauma, your body tries to do what it’s supposed to do. It wants to protect you. Therapy helps you work through your warning signals. For example, you can begin letting your body know that you are no longer in danger. A trauma body recovery counselor can help. Together, we can build the skills you need to identify your triggers, patterns, and needs. To learn more, reach out for a free consultation.

Learn more about our trauma therapy. Serving Boulder, Longmont, Denver.

For your other needs, you can count on April Lyons Psychotherapy Group, to help you heal and grow through EMDR therapy, somatic therapy, and PTSD treatment – because we believe in your strength and potential for recovery.