UNDERSTANDING TRAUMA

March 5, 2023 Buffalo Latino Village

Many who have endured trauma suffer from anxiety. The good news, however, is that anxiety treatment is effective in most cases, and some very simple practices can keep anxiety at bay in the future. Anxiety can manifest with a mild case of the jitters to a terror so great we are afraid to leave our own homes. Following are a few strategies to assist with anxiety. There is no universal tool for dealing with anxiety as we are unique beings. Try several tools to discover what works best for you. Many techniques mentioned will reduce stress and strife immediately.

The first and most simple and direct way to calm anxiety is something we do every day. Breathing is our instrument to calm. Our breath is our instrument. Problems arise t when we are anxious because we automatically breathe in a way that can make our anxiety worse. Practice belly breathing. Breathe slowly and deeply so that our belly expands with each breath we take and contracts when we exhale. When we are anxious, we tend to talk to ourselves in negative ways. Negative messages fuel our anxiety, which increases catastrophic thoughts. Anxiety is very often a future-oriented condition. We worry about what might happen. The “what if” can never be answered at the moment and thus causes anxiety.

Mindfulness activities have been proven to decrease anxiety. Practice mindfulness while walking by using your senses to focus on your surroundings. Guided meditation is helpful while you simply observe your thoughts. Give music your undivided attention. Use your non–dominant hand to draw a picture. Close your eyes while keeping your pencil on the paper and draw your portrait. These 54321 exercises will help you be in the moment. Discover 5 items you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 objects you can hear, 2 items you can smell, and 1 item you can taste. Name the items and intentionally observe them.

These practices can reliably reduce your anxiety, but it does take practice and focus. Counseling for anxiety can also be helpful if symptoms are more severe or longstanding. Joining a meditation group, physical exercise, or taking classes in Tai Chi, Yoga, or Qi Gong can help decrease anxiety too. Next edition we will tackle yet another symptom of trauma: depression.