When Healing From Trauma Looks Like Hiding

"We manage our day-to-day lives very much like an Instagram feed. Our friends, coworkers, and family assume we are thriving and doing well. Managing impressions is especially important when a person has been impacted by trauma and works hard to move on with their lives, but continues to view themselves, others, and the world with suspicion. Our efforts to keep up our public image may be making things worse, not better."

"Many traumatized individuals assume that because they do not have the hallmark signs and symptoms of post- traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD), they are doing fine. But there is a world of difference between being symptom-free and doing well. Some who experience trauma may not have problems with intrusive memories, avoidance, or baseline mood. Still, they fail to see how issues with distrust, suspicion, and insecurity undermine their relationships and how they navigate life."

"Nevertheless, depending on the type of trauma experienced, there will always be a large percentage of people who do not go on to develop PTSD. It might be simple to assume that those who do not have PTSD are, in fact, well-adjusted. Unfortunately, simply not meeting the full criteria for PTSD does not necessarily mean a person does not struggle with issues of trust, safety, control, intimacy, and self-esteem."

Many people present a thriving public image while managing day-to-day lives like an Instagram feed. Impression management can be especially pronounced after trauma and may worsen underlying problems. Absence of hallmark PTSD symptoms does not guarantee healthy functioning; some people lack intrusive memories or avoidance yet still experience distrust, suspicion, insecurity, and relationship impairment. Lifetime PTSD affects at least six percent of adults, but many trauma-exposed individuals never meet full PTSD criteria. Recovery begins by recognizing struggles with safety, trust, control and power, esteem, and intimacy. Cognitive Processing Therapy offers a structured, evidence-supported 12-session approach that targets these problem areas.

Read at Psychology Today