Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be debilitating. The result of experiencing a traumatic event, this mental health condition can have a significant impact on your brain. If you, or a loved one, have experienced a traumatic event, learning about how PTSD affects the brain can be your first step toward recovery.
Healing from trauma isn’t easy. That’s why at My 5 Palms, we provide the compassionate, professional support you need to process and move through the trauma. Call 1.844.675.1022 today and learn about our PTSD treatment center.
How Does PTSD Affect the Brain?
Your brain is responsible for how you think, feel, and behave. Experiencing a traumatic event, such as an accident, assault, or natural disaster, can affect how your brain responds to places, sounds, and events. If you’ve developed PTSD as a result of trauma, your brain’s fear response becomes overactive, causing you to feel nervous and hypervigilant even in situations that are not necessarily dangerous. How PTSD affects the brain can be thought of by its impact on these three parts:
- Amygdala – This is the part of your brain that alerts you to danger. When you encounter something that could be threatening, the amygdala sounds the alarm so that your mind and body can prepare to take the necessary actions to keep you safe. However, when you have PTSD, the amygdala can be hyperactive and set off a fear response in situations that do not warrant it.
- Prefrontal cortex – This area of the brain is responsible for processing and evaluating incoming information. When the amygdala activates the fear response, the prefrontal cortex allows you to determine whether there is actually a threat and deactivate it if danger is not present. In a person with PTSD, the prefrontal cortex is not as effective at doing its job, so the fear response can remain despite the lack of danger. This can keep you in a frequent state of arousal and anxiety.
- Hippocampus – This portion of the brain handles memories, and after a traumatic event, it may trigger flashbacks as it attempts to make sense of what happened. You may notice flashbacks or thoughts of the event popping into your head frequently.
PTSD’s effect on these three areas of the brain is what causes fear, anxiety, distorted thoughts about the traumatic event, flashbacks, trembling, elevated heart rate, and difficulty sleeping. These symptoms can develop immediately after the event in some individuals, but in others, the condition may take months or even years to develop.
Tips for Healing from Trauma
Recovery from trauma is not easy, but with the right care, you can overcome the symptoms that disrupt your daily life. Here are some tips to help you manage PTSD:
Get Professional Help
Find a trauma-informed counselor who can help you process the traumatic experience through specialized trauma therapies like eye movement desensitization reprocessing therapy (EMDR).
Practice Stress Reduction Techniques
Since PTSD involves an overactive stress response, helping to reduce feelings of stress and tension can help ease your symptoms. Meditation, yoga, journaling, and spending time in nature can all help with healing from trauma.
Build a Support System
Surround yourself with people you trust who you can talk to about PTSD symptoms. They can help you feel safe and supported when you experience a heightened stress response.
Set Healthy Boundaries
Avoidance is a common response to a traumatic event, and while exposure therapy is sometimes part of healing from trauma, it is okay to say no to things that trigger too much distress. Work together with a therapist on a timeline for exposure therapy if you are ready to address avoidance, but do not let others pressure you into doing so before you feel ready.
Start Healing from Trauma by Calling My 5 Palms Today
Without treatment, the effects of trauma can linger for years. There is no need to struggle with your symptoms any longer. Call My 5 Palms at 1.844.675.1022 or fill out our online form to speak with one of our friendly staff members about healing from PTSD at our trauma-informed treatment center.
