Childhood Trauma Can Affect Your Health through Adulthood

Trauma, or more specifically childhood trauma, has been something that not many people talk about. Especially if these negative experiences were in the hands of parents, the children may not be able to bring it up even in adulthood. These bad experiences that happened in your childhood have caused a scar in your life. Sadly, its impact can remain with you through adulthood not just mentally but also physically.

Fortunately, this topic has been gaining attention in recent times. More and more people have become aware of it and are now helping other people, who have also experienced similar situations, make their lives better.

A research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in November 2019 has revealed several facts about childhood trauma, its devastating effects on people, and why it is important to prevent it.

According to the report, Adverse Childhood Experiences or ACES can include experiences like witnessing domestic violence, physical and emotional neglect, having a loved one who have attempted or died by suicide, and having a parent who has been battling mental health issues and substance abuse.

Around 63.95% of the more than 17K adults surveyed has revealed that they have at least one ACE. Meanwhile, 12.5% of the subjects had at least 4. It turns out that the more ACEs you experienced, the more at risk you are in developing bad habits and health conditions.

People who experienced more traumatic experiences in childhood tend to engage in heavy drinking and smoking. These may eventually lead to health issues like depression, heart disease, asthma, diabetes, and cancer. Half of the 10 leading causes of deaths in the US are associated with ACES.

What is Childhood Trauma?

According to Houston-based therapist Kelsei LeAnn, Psy.D., childhood trauma can be defined as something that has had significant effect on how you view and handle your life, relationships, and yourself.

According to LeAnn, it is possible for adults who have had childhood trauma to heal and have healthy relationships. One of the first things that people should do is to acknowledge and accept that they have indeed experienced something traumatic.

Then, they can set up firm boundaries to enable themselves to recover from the trauma. It’s a good thing that more and more people have been speaking up about it and are taking steps to become more emotionally whole.

LeAnn also notes that mental health can affect physical health. She recommends finding a physical activity that would fit you. If you can’t go to the gym for twice or thrice a week, you can just get some fresh air.

Give Yourself Time to Heal

People who have experienced childhood trauma tend to overwork and overthink on specific things to avoid facing their problems. Sometimes, they get overwhelmed with the urge to heal all their worries and pain in an instant. However, healing is not an overnight process. Choose a specific area to focus on consistently. Once you see improvements, you can then move on to another aspect toward your holistic well-being.