Select Page

Why Trauma Beliefs Are So Hard to Change | Counseling and Social Work Skills

by | Jul 12, 2024

When you experience trauma, it's like a deep wound in your psyche, one that affects how you view the world, yourself, and the safety of your environment. The beliefs that form as a result of trauma are essentially your mind's attempt to protect you from future harm. However, these beliefs can sometimes become barriers to healing, making it difficult to move forward and enjoy a fulfilling life.

Understanding why these trauma-related beliefs are so sticky can empower you to start changing them. Trauma imprints itself deeply within your emotions. For instance, if you've ever been in a car accident during a storm, you might develop the belief that driving in the rain is dangerous. While there is a basis in reality for this belief—it is indeed safer to drive in clear conditions—this belief can become all-encompassing and restrictive. This type of thinking can prevent you from driving even under mild rain, which, in most cases, is perfectly safe with the right precautions.

One reason trauma beliefs are hard to change is their emotional intensity. Events that carry strong emotions, like fear or pain, are encoded more deeply in your memory. Think of your memory as a landscape: emotional memories are boulders, difficult to move or alter, while non-emotional memories are like pebbles, easily brushed aside. This means that emotionally charged trauma memories can dominate your mental landscape, overshadowing more rational or non-threatening memories.

Anger is another emotion intricately linked to trauma. It is often a response to feeling threatened or powerless, the core emotions of trauma. Unresolved anger can make it even harder to let go of trauma beliefs. This anger might not just be directed outward; it often turns inward, manifesting as guilt or shame. Guilt is feeling bad about something you did, while shame involves feeling bad about who you are. These emotions can reinforce negative trauma beliefs, making you feel as though you deserved the bad things that happened.

Another concept to consider is cognitive accommodation. This idea, proposed by psychologist Jean Piaget, suggests that you modify your understanding of the world to incorporate new, often traumatic experiences. For example, if something occurs that doesn't fit with your previous understanding of safety and security, you might adjust your worldview to make sense of this new information. This can lead to overgeneralizations like “it's never safe to drive in the rain,” a belief that is more about emotional protection than factual accuracy.

Addressing trauma beliefs involves challenging these generalizations and cognitive biases. Cognitive biases like confirmation bias can lead you to seek out information that supports your trauma beliefs while ignoring contradictory evidence. This bias reinforces the trauma belief and prevents you from seeing the full picture. For instance, if you believe that storms always lead to disasters, you might disproportionately remember the times when something bad happened during a storm and forget the numerous occasions when nothing happened.

To begin changing these deep-seated beliefs, it's helpful to:

  • Acknowledge the emotional weight of trauma and recognize the protective intent behind trauma beliefs.
  • Challenge cognitive biases by seeking out and acknowledging information that contradicts your trauma-based beliefs.
  • Gradually expose yourself to the situations you fear in a controlled and safe manner to relearn safety and recalibrate your emotional responses.

Understanding and altering trauma beliefs is a gradual process. It requires patience, self-compassion, and often the support of a professional. By recognizing the facts and reevaluating your beliefs in the current context, you can begin to dismantle the boulders of trauma from your mental landscape, making room for more balanced and healthy views. This not only helps in healing from past trauma but also in building resilience against future stressors.