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How Trauma Gets Trapped in Your Body. Trauma is a mental injury, not a mental illness, but when that stress becomes chronic, it takes root in your body. In the last video we talked about how stress hurts your body. In this video you’ll learn how trauma gets trapped in your body. We’re going to talk about ACES and crocodiles and how Holocaust survivors passed down anxious genes to their kids. You’ll learn why you feel stuck in chronic stress. And in the next video you’ll learn what to do about it.
At its essence, trauma is in the nervous system. When your brain perceives a threat (like a crocodile), it turns on the self-protective fight-or-flight response. This is the sympathetic response in your autonomic nervous system. You move from a state of safety to activation - fighting off an attacker, running away, defending and protecting yourself. Your nervous system triggers a massive physiological response, pumping out adrenaline to jolt your muscles into action and the stress hormone cortisol to increase blood sugar to power your intense movement. But cortisol also turns off non-immediately essential functions like your immune system, your digestion, healing, and repairing systems in your body.


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Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health.
In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction.
And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe

If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services.
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