16 Jul Childhood trauma: understanding its impact and freeing yourself from it
I am Laurence DELINOT, I practiceericksonian hypnosis andhumanistic hypnosis in my office in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, as well as remotely. For many years, I’ve been helping men and women of all ages to free themselves from symptoms linked to emotional wounds caused by traumatic childhood situations. These wounds (wounds of betrayalwound of injustice, wounds of abandonment, wound of rejection, wound of humiliation) can have a major impact on everyone’s life.
So does your past still influence your present? Find out how to know if you’ve suffered a childhood trauma, and how to free yourself from it.
What is childhood trauma?
Psychological trauma is a painful emotional experience often caused by a shock or a repetition of situations in which a person feels insecure. Trauma can occur at any age. Here, we’ll concentrate on childhood trauma, the period during which the psyche is being built up. It’s during the first years of life that self-confidence is built up.
If the environment in which the child evolves is secure, he or she will acquire the skills needed to get through life’s inevitable trials. Social interactions, romantic relationships and entry into working life will be experienced with enthusiasm.
Abuse, illness and death are all traumatic experiences for a child in the making, and will have a lasting impact on the rest of his or her life.
How do you know if you have a childhood trauma?
Symptoms of unresolved trauma
Childhood traumas have negative and sometimes disabling repercussions in adult life. Behavioral disorders such as risk-taking behavior, addictive behavior, anxiety disorders, etc. are common. anxiety disorders including OCD, anxiety attacks, phobias phobiashypervigilance, characterized by constant control over oneself and others.
The repercussions in social and intimate relationships are characterized by fear of abandonment, emotional dependence,avoidance, jealousy and manipulation.
Physical symptoms often include chronic pain, unexplained fatigue and sleep disorders.
How do you remember a forgotten or repressed childhood trauma?
Out of repression
When a situation arises that the brain perceives as dangerous, stress levels rise, and when this stress is too great to maintain psychic equilibrium, there is a protective mechanism called repression. The traumatic event is relegated to the unconscious, where the memory and emotion lie dormant until they can resurface (often unexpectedly and in different forms).
Certain situations may resonate with the traumatic event, generating behaviors that are as incomprehensible as they are uncontrollable. Dreams may evoke the event, but without the precise memory. Sometimes, it may come back in the form of flashes.
If repression is initially an effective protection, over time it becomes a psychic straitjacket that prevents us from moving towards true balance.
Out of denial
Denial: the cousin of repression. The memory is not repressed, but minimized, as are the emotions associated with it. Denial prevents healthy, authentic relationships. It’s a protective system that keeps the person in victim status. Denial prevents questioning and often feeds repetitive patterns.
For example, a child who has been devalued by a very demanding parent can be very demanding of himself and those close to him, using punishment or devaluation to deny that the upbringing he received was emotionally devastating. The pattern repeats itself.
How do you overcome childhood trauma?
Awareness and acceptance of emotions
Trauma need not be inevitable. Once a victim, never a victim forever. When an intolerable situation arises, the first thing to do is to verbalize as much as possible to release the emotions before they are repressed. Acknowledging that you’ve experienced the unbearable transforms you from victim to witness. A possibility toevacuate the image through repetition, as if we were wearing out the event by giving details that are increasingly blurred. A natural detachment occurs.
Transform limiting patterns and rebuild self-esteem
Trauma, when repressed and unprocessed at the time, generates limiting beliefs that stir in the unconscious. In the case of an accident, it may be that driving is dangerous. In the case of a humiliating situation, it might be the thought that I’m worthless, that I’m uninteresting.
Trauma is not necessarily linked to a major event as one might imagine. Repeated anecdotal situations that may go unnoticed can also be traumatic.
Hypnosis to heal childhood traumas
Why is hypnosis a powerful tool?
Hypnosis is an interesting technique for healing childhood wounds, as it offers more direct access to the unconscious, enabling blocked memories to be released, negative emotional patterns to be deconditioned andemotions associated with painful memoriesto be soothed. Different approaches can be adapted to suit individual needs and the moment in question.
The different hypnosis methods
Ericksonian hypnosis
Ericksonian hypnosis uses dissociation to return to the situation, while remaining in a safe environment. The altered state of consciousness induced by suggestions enables you to relive the scene while dissociated. It is then possible to find the resources naturally present in the unconscious mind to reprogram beliefs. The hypnotic trance state enables resistance to be overcome.
Humanist hypnosis
Humanist hypnosis allows you to work on symbolic wounded parts such as theinner childthe masculine and feminine, reconnecting with emotions to welcome them and free ourselves from them. L’self-hypnosis helps to consolidate the inner healing process and to become increasingly autonomous in this process.
How does a hypnosis session work?
Before any session, a discussion is necessary to determine the problematic event and identify the beliefs linked to it.
This is the first session of the interview, which will also give the consultant the confidence to let go during the hypnosis session.
The person can be seated or lying down. Suggestions are made to relax and let the mind rest, while a part takes the person into a deeper state of benefit.
When thestate of relaxation is reached, the unconscious can receive suggestions and transform what needs to be transformed.
EMDR, another technique to overcome childhood trauma
The eye movement therapy is an alternative to hypnosis for treating childhood trauma by desensitizing and reprogramming the link to the traumatic memory.
Following a very precise protocol, the aim is to bring the situation back into the safe zone and to reduce the intensity of the feelings associated with an image that may evolve as the process progresses. Getting to zero in terms of feelings, with an image that is blurred and sometimes gone, lets you know that it existed but no longer has any impact in the present, without this event being repressed. It is simply digested.
Make an appointment with Laurence DELINOT