Recovery from childhood trauma is a process. As I tell myself over and over, there is no fast food healing. Recovery takes time. But as we invest time into recovery, we see progress. Gauging that progress is not always easy. We get bogged down in the weeds of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms.
Even when the symptoms of PTSD are still present, there is progress if we stay in the recovery process. We may still have a long road of recovery before us but looking at our progress helps us keep going. It’s like the old song says, “Accentuate the positive.”
5 signs of healing from childhood trauma
Do you need encouragement? Here are five signs that you’re healing from childhood trauma:
1. You don’t hate yourself. Where you once said negative comments about yourself, such as “I’m worthless,” you recognize that you’re a work in progress. You can extend patience with yourself and your recovery process. You accept yourself.
Merely tolerating yourself is not self-acceptance. According to a blog post by Consciously Connected Travel,
Self-acceptance goes beyond tolerating the way you view yourself. It is accepting your behavior, attitude, and lifestyle, acknowledging them, and working towards making a desired change. It includes accepting your body, protecting yourself against harsh criticism, and believing in your capabilities. Practicing self-acceptance helps you to realize your qualities, both bad and good, and eases feelings of guilt and unhappiness. When we begin to accept who we are, we set ourselves up for improvement.
2. You have a morning routine. You wake up every morning and engage in at least one practice that aids in recovery. Whether it’s meditation, journaling, tapping (emotional freedom technique), prayer, or something else doesn’t matter. As long as you do one thing every morning, you are making progress.
“A morning routine founded on self-care and mental health happiness is like restoring our personal energy reserve,” says Never Alone, a blog focused on mental health. “You might find a healthy morning routine makes you feel like you have a bit more to give throughout the day.
3. You allow yourself to feel negative emotions, and can name them. Emotional numbing is common among childhood trauma survivors. Researchers analyzed the trauma narratives of 55 adult survivors of child sexual abuse. They found that those who used emotional language had better psychological outcomes.
4. You are getting better at recognizing and dismantling triggers. A trigger is an emotional hot button. “Triggers are events that tend to catapult us instantly into highly emotional reactions, often way out of proportion to the event itself,” according to Mediators Beyond Borders. Recognizing them is essential in trauma recovery. Even better is when you recognize a trigger and use a tool such as deep breathing to dismantle it.
5. You are not ashamed of what happened to you as a child. “Shame is a prison as cruel as the grave,” the song Ain’t No Grave proclaims. For child trauma survivors, particularly child sexual abuse survivors, shame is a constant companion. When you realize that what happened to you is not your fault and no longer feel ashamed of it, you have made great progress.
Leave discouragement behind
Perhaps you’re just starting the recovery process or are not that far into it. If you read through this list and can’t check any of it off, it’s okay. If you stay in the recovery process you will see progress. Take it from someone who knows. You are on no one else’s timeline, only your own.
Thank you especially for this one I needed it today❤