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When you think about trauma, incidents such as violent assault, abuse, or severe accidents might come to mind. However, trauma isn’t always obvious. Emotional wounds from neglect, toxic relationships, childhood experiences, or ongoing stress can be just as damaging, affecting how we feel, think, and connect with others.
Trauma therapy can help uncover the hidden effects of past experiences and provide the tools needed to heal. If you often feel anxious, overwhelmed, or disconnected, you may be carrying unresolved trauma without realizing it. Below are four subtle signs of trauma that may indicate you are dealing with more than you think.
Recognizing Subtle Signs of Trauma
1. Feeling Constantly Overwhelmed
Trauma can cause a chronic state of overwhelm, making everyday responsibilities feel exhausting. You may feel like there’s too much to do, too many people needing your attention, and no room to breathe. Trauma often keeps the nervous system stuck in survival mode, leaving you feeling burnt out, anxious, and emotionally drained. If daily life feels unmanageable, this could be a sign that unresolved trauma is impacting your emotional well-being.
2. Overreacting to Small Triggers
People with unhealed trauma often react intensely to situations that seem minor to others. These emotional overreactions may feel out of proportion, yet they stem from deeply buried pain and past experiences.
For example, if a small disagreement sends you into rage, tears, or panic, it may indicate that past trauma is surfacing. Trauma therapy helps identify where these reactions come from and teaches techniques to regulate emotions and reduce emotional triggers.
3. Struggling with Shame & Self-Blame
Many people with emotional trauma experience shame, self-blame, or feelings of unworthiness. You might believe you are weak for struggling or feel a sense of stigma around what you endured. This can prevent you from acknowledging your trauma or seeking help.
Healing from trauma requires self-compassion. Trauma therapy can help you reframe harmful beliefs, shift your self-perception, and develop a healthier sense of self-worth.
4. Zoning Out & Feeling Disconnected
Do you find yourself daydreaming, zoning out, or struggling to stay present in conversations? Emotional trauma can cause dissociation, where your mind disconnects from the moment as a protective mechanism.
While this may have helped you cope in the past, staying emotionally numb or disconnected can make it difficult to fully engage in life and relationships. Therapy can help you reconnect with yourself and your emotions in a safe, gradual way.
How Trauma Therapy Helps You Heal
Recognizing the subtle signs of trauma is the first step—healing requires support and evidence-based trauma therapy. Trauma is stored in both the mind and body, often leading to emotional dysregulation, anxiety, and difficulty in relationships. Therapy provides the tools and space needed to process unresolved pain and rebuild a sense of safety.
At Creating Space Therapy, we use trauma-informed approaches to support clients in:
✔ Identifying how trauma affects emotions, thoughts, and behaviors.
✔ Developing emotional regulation strategies to reduce overwhelm and stress.
✔ Using EMDR and somatic therapy to process and release stored trauma.
✔ Healing relational trauma and building healthier relationships.
✔ Overcoming shame and self-blame through self-compassion techniques.
With the right support, healing is possible. Our trauma therapy specialists, Thelma Razo, LCSW, and Tracy Teichman, LSW, offer personalized trauma therapy to help you reclaim your emotional well-being and feel more in control of your life.
Meet Our Trauma Therapy Specialists
At Creating Space Therapy, we specialize in trauma therapy to help individuals recognize and heal from the effects of both obvious and hidden trauma.
Our experienced trauma therapists, Thelma Razo, LCSW, and Tracy Teichman, LSW, provide evidence-based, compassionate care for those struggling with the lingering effects of emotional trauma, PTSD, and relational trauma.
Thelma Razo, LCSW, utilizes EMDR, somatic therapy, and trauma-informed care to help clients process past trauma, regulate their nervous system, and build resilience.
Tracy Teichman, LSW, specializes in attachment-based trauma therapy, working with individuals to identify how trauma has shaped their relationships and self-perception while helping them rebuild a sense of safety.
If you recognize subtle signs of trauma in yourself, trauma therapy can help you reclaim your emotional well-being and move forward with greater confidence and clarity.
Contact Us for Support
If you’re ready to start your healing journey, we are here to help. At Creating Space Therapy, we offer trauma therapy both in-person in Batavia and Naperville, as well as online trauma therapy for all Illinois residents.
Click here to schedule a free consultation with one of our trauma therapists, or call us today at (630) 601-3460 to get started.
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