Deal with unresolved trauma

Deal with Unresolved Trauma

Clean House and Begin Healing

Unresolved trauma can be like a heavy weight that sits in the corners of your mind, quietly influencing your thoughts, behaviors, and even your physical health. Over time, it can manifest in subtle or not-so-subtle ways—through anxiety, depression, chronic pain, unhealthy coping mechanisms, or a sense of being stuck in life.

The truth is, trauma doesn’t just disappear on its own. In fact, ignoring or suppressing unresolved trauma can take a serious toll on both your mental and physical health. It’s time to clean house, confront the past, and begin the journey toward healing. Here’s a guide on how to deal with unresolved trauma, reclaim your power, and heal in a way that works for you.

1. Acknowledge the Trauma: The First Step Toward Healing

The first step in healing trauma is often the hardest: acknowledging that it’s there. Whether it’s childhood trauma, past abuse, grief, or any deeply painful experience, simply recognizing that you’ve been affected is an essential part of the process.

Identify the pain: Ask yourself, "What events or experiences from my past still have a hold on me?" You might not even realize the full scope of the trauma until you begin to really sit with it. It can take many forms—emotional abuse, neglect, loss, abandonment, or other traumatic experiences that have shaped who you are today.
Stop minimizing your experience: It’s common to downplay trauma, especially if it was from an experience you feel society doesn’t consider "bad enough" to be traumatic. But the truth is, trauma is relative. Your pain, no matter how it came about, is valid.

Acknowledging the trauma is about accepting that something has hurt you and recognizing that this pain doesn’t define your worth. It’s an opportunity to shift the power back into your hands and start your healing process.

2. Don’t Let Trauma Make You Sick: The Mind-Body Connection

Trauma can show up in many physical ways, especially when it’s left unresolved. Chronic stress, muscle tension, headaches, digestive problems, and even autoimmune diseases can all be linked to unhealed emotional wounds. Your mind and body are deeply connected, and trauma that’s not processed can manifest as physical illness.

Stress and chronic illness: Unprocessed trauma often keeps the body in a heightened state of stress—leading to a variety of health issues like sleep disturbances, heart problems, digestive issues, or chronic pain. The body keeps score of unresolved trauma, as the famous book title suggests.
Physical symptoms: If you’re experiencing unexplained symptoms—like tension headaches, back pain, or frequent colds—it may be your body’s way of signaling that it’s holding onto trauma. Don’t ignore these signs. Taking care of your mental health isn’t just about emotional healing; it’s about supporting your physical health too.

Healing trauma requires holistic care. You can start by:

Getting regular exercise: Movement helps to release tension in the body and ease the physical symptoms of trauma. Gentle practices like yoga, walking, or stretching can help you reconnect with your body and promote emotional well-being.
Practicing mindfulness: Mindfulness, meditation, and deep breathing exercises can help calm your nervous system, reduce anxiety, and promote emotional healing.

3. EMDR: A Powerful Tool for Healing Trauma

One of the most effective therapeutic techniques for dealing with unresolved trauma is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). This innovative therapy helps process traumatic memories and reduce their emotional charge.

How EMDR works: During EMDR, a trained therapist guides you through recalling traumatic memories while using bilateral stimulation (typically through guided eye movements, taps, or sounds). This helps to rewire the brain’s responses to trauma and allows you to process the painful memories in a healthier way.
EMDR’s effectiveness: Studies have shown that EMDR can significantly reduce the emotional intensity of traumatic memories and help individuals heal from conditions like PTSD, anxiety, and depression. Many people find that after several EMDR sessions, their trauma feels less overwhelming, and they’re able to process the events in a way that’s no longer debilitating.

If you’re struggling with unresolved trauma, EMDR can be a powerful tool to help you work through it. Finding a licensed therapist who specializes in EMDR can be a game-changer in your healing journey.

4. Journaling and Expressive Writing: Releasing What’s Inside

Another tool to help process trauma is writing. Journaling can help you externalize your feelings and give you a safe space to explore the depths of your emotions. When trauma feels too heavy to carry, writing it out can make the weight feel a little lighter.

Freewriting: Set aside time each day or week to write without judgment or structure. Let your thoughts flow freely onto the page without worrying about grammar or punctuation. Allow your subconscious to guide the writing process, as it may bring up memories or emotions you hadn’t fully processed yet.
Trauma-focused writing prompts: Try writing about your trauma in a way that feels empowering, like rewriting the story from your perspective or imagining a safe and nurturing ending. You can also write letters to people you feel have hurt you, or even to your past self, offering forgiveness, compassion, or understanding.

Writing can help you gain clarity and provide a sense of release, making it easier to begin healing from within.

5. Therapy and Professional Support: Seek the Help You Deserve

While journaling and self-care practices can be immensely helpful, working with a trained professional can accelerate your healing process. Therapy is a safe space to explore unresolved trauma in a structured, supportive environment.

Talk therapy: Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and psychodynamic therapy are all effective approaches for dealing with trauma. A therapist can guide you through the healing process and offer you coping strategies to deal with the emotional aftermath of trauma.

Group therapy: Sometimes, sharing your experience with others who’ve gone through similar situations can provide immense comfort and validation. Group therapy can help reduce isolation and foster a sense of connection, making it easier to move through trauma together.

There’s no shame in seeking help. Therapy provides the tools, support, and compassion needed to heal from trauma and reclaim your life.

6. Healing Through Compassion: Show Yourself Kindness

Trauma recovery isn’t linear, and there will be days when it feels like you’re taking one step forward and two steps back. Be kind to yourself during this process.

Practice self-compassion: Understand that healing takes time. Don’t rush yourself or criticize your progress. Allow yourself to feel whatever comes up without judgment. Healing is a journey, not a race.
Engage in self-care: While the deep work of healing trauma is essential, it’s also important to nurture your body and soul in simple, restorative ways. Take bubble baths, get enough sleep, eat nourishing foods, or spend time in nature. Healing requires physical, mental, and emotional care.

By showing yourself love and compassion, you create the foundation for healing, and you allow yourself the space to heal at your own pace.

7. Forgiveness: Letting Go of the Past

Forgiveness doesn’t mean excusing the harm that was done to you—it means freeing yourself from the burden of carrying anger, resentment, or shame.

Forgiving others: If there’s someone you feel has caused you harm, consider the possibility of forgiveness. This doesn’t mean you have to reconcile with them, but letting go of the emotional weight of anger can help you move forward.
Forgiving yourself: Often, trauma leaves behind feelings of shame or guilt. If you’ve been holding onto self-blame, practice forgiving yourself. You were doing the best you could with the tools you had at the time.

Forgiveness is one of the most powerful ways to clear out emotional clutter, make peace with your past, and create space for healing to occur.

Conclusion: You Deserve to Heal

Dealing with unresolved trauma can feel overwhelming, but it’s essential to remember that healing is possible. By acknowledging your pain, seeking professional support, practicing self-compassion, and using tools like EMDR, you can clean house and start fresh.

Healing takes time, but you have the power to reclaim your life from the grip of unresolved trauma. You are deserving of peace, health, and happiness—and it’s never too late to start the journey toward healing.

For all things self-love and self-care, come connect with me on Instagram @pinkdreamworkshop

I share daily inspiration, helpful tips, and, of course, everything pink to brighten your day. Let's build a life full of love and positivity, together!

Deal with Unresolved Trauma

Clean House and Begin Healing

​

1. Acknowledge the Trauma: The First Step Toward Healing

The first step in healing trauma is often the hardest: acknowledging that it’s there. Whether it’s childhood trauma, past abuse, grief, or any deeply painful experience, simply recognizing that you’ve been affected is an essential part of the process.

​

Stop minimizing your experience: It’s common to downplay trauma, especially if it was from an experience you feel society doesn’t consider "bad enough" to be traumatic. But the truth is, trauma is relative. Your pain, no matter how it came about, is valid.

​

Acknowledging the trauma is about accepting that something has hurt you and recognizing that this pain doesn’t define your worth. It’s an opportunity to shift the power back into your hands and start your healing process.

​

2. Don’t Let Trauma Make You Sick: The Mind-Body Connection

​

Stress and chronic illness: Unprocessed trauma often keeps the body in a heightened state of stress—leading to a variety of health issues like sleep disturbances, heart problems, digestive issues, or chronic pain. The body keeps score of unresolved trauma, as the famous book title suggests.

​​

Healing trauma requires holistic care. You can start by:

Getting regular exercise: Movement helps to release tension in the body and ease the physical symptoms of trauma. Gentle practices like yoga, walking, or stretching can help you reconnect with your body and promote emotional well-being.

Practicing mindfulness: Mindfulness, meditation, and deep breathing exercises can help calm your nervous system, reduce anxiety, and promote emotional healing.

​​

3. EMDR: A Powerful Tool for Healing Trauma

One of the most effective therapeutic techniques for dealing with unresolved trauma is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). This innovative therapy helps process traumatic memories and reduce their emotional charge.

​

​​

If you’re struggling with unresolved trauma, EMDR can be a powerful tool to help you work through it. Finding a licensed therapist who specializes in EMDR can be a game-changer in your healing journey.

​

4. Journaling and Expressive Writing: Releasing What’s Inside

Another tool to help process trauma is writing. Journaling can help you externalize your feelings and give you a safe space to explore the depths of your emotions. When trauma feels too heavy to carry, writing it out can make the weight feel a little lighter.

​

​

Writing can help you gain clarity and provide a sense of release, making it easier to begin healing from within.

​

5. Therapy and Professional Support: Seek the Help You Deserve

While journaling and self-care practices can be immensely helpful, working with a trained professional can accelerate your healing process. Therapy is a safe space to explore unresolved trauma in a structured, supportive environment.

​

Talk therapy: Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and psychodynamic therapy are all effective approaches for dealing with trauma. A therapist can guide you through the healing process and offer you coping strategies to deal with the emotional aftermath of trauma.

​​

Group therapy: Sometimes, sharing your experience with others who’ve gone through similar situations can provide immense comfort and validation. Group therapy can help reduce isolation and foster a sense of connection, making it easier to move through trauma together.

​​

There’s no shame in seeking help. Therapy provides the tools, support, and compassion needed to heal from trauma and reclaim your life.

​

6. Healing Through Compassion: Show Yourself Kindness

Trauma recovery isn’t linear, and there will be days when it feels like you’re taking one step forward and two steps back. Be kind to yourself during this process.

​

Practice self-compassion: Understand that healing takes time. Don’t rush yourself or criticize your progress. Allow yourself to feel whatever comes up without judgment. Healing is a journey, not a race.

Engage in self-care: While the deep work of healing trauma is essential, it’s also important to nurture your body and soul in simple, restorative ways. Take bubble baths, get enough sleep, eat nourishing foods, or spend time in nature. Healing requires physical, mental, and emotional care.

By showing yourself love and compassion, you create the foundation for healing, and you allow yourself the space to heal at your own pace.

​

7. Forgiveness: Letting Go of the Past

Forgiveness doesn’t mean excusing the harm that was done to you—it means freeing yourself from the burden of carrying anger, resentment, or shame.

​

Forgiving others: If there’s someone you feel has caused you harm, consider the possibility of forgiveness. This doesn’t mean you have to reconcile with them, but letting go of the emotional weight of anger can help you move forward.

Forgiving yourself: Often, trauma leaves behind feelings of shame or guilt. If you’ve been holding onto self-blame, practice forgiving yourself. You were doing the best you could with the tools you had at the time.

​​

Forgiveness is one of the most powerful ways to clear out emotional clutter, make peace with your past, and create space for healing to occur.

​

Conclusion: You Deserve to Heal

Dealing with unresolved trauma can feel overwhelming, but it’s essential to remember that healing is possible. By acknowledging your pain, seeking professional support, practicing self-compassion, and using tools like EMDR, you can clean house and start fresh.

​

Healing takes time, but you have the power to reclaim your life from the grip of unresolved trauma. You are deserving of peace, health, and happiness—and it’s never too late to start the journey toward healing.

​

For all things self-love and self-care, come connect with me on Instagram @pinkdreamworkshop

I share daily inspiration, helpful tips, and, of course, everything pink to brighten your day. Let's build a life full of love and positivity, together!

@pinkdreamworkshop