Breaking Down the Basics of Trauma-Informed Self-Care
An introduction to some of the key elements of self-care from a trauma-informed perspective that accounts for the impact of chronic stress.
We can all benefit from recognizing the impact of this kind of stress on our lives!
Trauma-informed self-care means taking care of yourself in ways that make you aware of and sensitive to how trauma might affect your health. It means being aware of the effects of traumatic events from the past or the present and using self-care techniques to help heal and improve overall health. Trauma-informed self-care puts safety, freedom, empowerment, and compassion at the top of the list when trying to improve one’s health.
Some important parts of trauma-informed self-care are:
Safety: means tending to your physical environment and doing things that make you feel physically and mentally safe, and reducing the number of triggers and things that stress you out.
Choice: means taking care of yourself in ways you can control, so you can make choices that fit your comfort and wants.
Empowerment: is when you take an active part in your self-care journey and realize you can heal and grow.
Sensitivity: means being aware of your triggers, emotions, and reactions, and choosing gentle and helpful ways to care for yourself.
Mindfulness: Practicing mindfulness helps you stay in the present moment, deal with hard feelings, and feel less anxious.
Boundaries: mean setting healthy limits in relationships and activities that can help you avoid re-traumatization and protect your health.
Self-compassion: means being kind and understanding to yourself and realizing that healing is a process with normal hurdles.
Seeking Support: If needed, seek professional help to work through trauma and its effects in a safe and supported setting.
Holistic approach: Taking care of yourself on physical, social, mental, and spiritual levels to make sure you’re healthy in all ways. Healing doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
Building resilience: means doing things that make you more resilient, help you cope better, and help you grow when bad things happen.
Trauma-informed self-care considers that everyone’s path to healing is different and that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. It gives people the power to make decisions that honor their past, help them heal, and improve their general quality of life.
