Is Childhood Trauma Affecting Your Adult Life? Look for These Signs

Childhood is in the distant past. Even if your childhood had unpleasant experiences, those are behind you now. Or are they? Unresolved childhood trauma can still affect you well into adulthood. Here are some of the signs that indicate that the ghosts of your childhood trauma are affecting your adult life.

You Have Control Issues

When childhood trauma is affecting your adult life, you probably also have control issues in your relationships. Maybe you’re trying to control others or you’re completely giving up your control to someone else. This imbalance of control in your relationships is neither an accident nor a personality flaw. It’s a sign that you fear at some level that bad things could happen to you.

You Feel Hopeless about the Future

A healthy, happy, well-rounded adult should have hopes and dreams. You should be able to have a sense that achieving your goals is possible. If you feel defeated before you even begin, that’s a probable sign that your childhood trauma is still affecting you. When you heal through counseling, you can develop the optimism to pursue your goals.

Your Relationships Have Problems

Does it seem like you keep dating the same type of person who makes you miserable? Everyone will occasionally argue or have differences of opinions. But unhealthy relationships have bigger issues. If most or all your relationships have conflicts, it might be that your childhood trauma is causing you to engage in damaging behavior patterns. Being excessively dependent on another person, fearing rejection or experiencing trauma in your relationships could be signs that you need to heal.

You Have Unusual Physical Symptoms

There’s a saying that your body keeps score of what’s happened to you. Signs that your body knows about the unresolved trauma you’ve suffered include mysterious aches and pains, frequent headaches or trouble sleeping. You may have unexplained dizziness or fainting spells. If you have chest pains even though doctors have run tests to determine that you’re healthy, it could be a sign of childhood trauma. Other common physical and mental symptoms related to childhood trauma include depression, anxiety, sweating and unexplained weight gain or loss. A history of trauma can also impair your immune system, making you more vulnerable to illness.

You’re Less Likely to Take Care of Yourself

Self-preservation is an instinct. Most people take steps to ensure they’ll stay healthy well into their senior years. If you suffered from childhood trauma, you may be less likely to take good care of yourself as in eating healthy food and getting regular exercise. Individuals who have experienced childhood trauma are more likely to cope by smoking or abusing alcohol or drugs. Trauma counseling may be the key to recognizing and moving past childhood trauma so that you can learn to treat your body with kindness and respect. Recognizing that you have value gives you a new incentive to take care of yourself and that childhood trauma was not your fault.

How to Heal from Childhood Trauma

A history of trauma can have devastating effects on your future health, your relationships, as well as your ability to be happy. Unfortunately, most people try to bury their past and avoid dealing with the trauma. One of the biggest fears of seeking counseling for childhood trauma is that you will have to relive the pain all over again. Fortunately, this isn’t the case—especially when you choose the appropriate type of help. With Rapid Resolution Therapy (RRT) you can heal.

Finding the right therapist is key to getting adequate help and to avoid being re-traumatized. Rapid Resolution Therapy is one of the most effective ways for moving past traumatic experiences. RRT is gentle and painless, allowing you to simply move beyond the events of the past.

When you look at what’s not working in your life, childhood trauma could be a root cause. But you don’t have to live with pain or dysfunctional relationships anymore. Rapid Resolution Therapy can help you move forward and live the life you desire.