When people come into my office and tell me, very early in a conversation, that they are ‘intuitive’ and ‘can see into people’ I often wonder if they have had trauma. The longer I do this for a living the more I realize that some of us developed our insights into humanity as a protection mechanism. We never knew, when dad or mom walked into the room, whether we were safe or in danger. We had to develop the skill for knowing how to react around instability. We constantly had our radar on. To this day, when we walk into a room, we are keenly aware of how people are feeling and reacting. We have a ‘bead’ on people and think it’s a gift. For some people a gift born out of a curse.
Trauma does weird things to people. Some other day I will talk about the link between trauma and hoarding, or people who can’t seem to finish projects, or those who go from romantic relationship to romantic relationship and consistently make bad decisions. People with trauma often repaint their house too often, or have spending or drug addictions, or have difficulty making decisions. Most trauma survivors become control freaks. Trauma has a way of twisting us emotionally and relationally, of creating fear and insecurity.
A few days ago I went to Swiss Chalet with a close friend who is a 6th Dan Master at his martial art. As we walked to the restaurant I was not worried about being jumped or attacked. I was hoping. When I’m with my martial arts buddies there is little danger of violation. My radar is turned off. The world is a safe place and I am not even remotely worried. Most people grow up in a world that is safe, and therefore have no pressing need to become discerning when they are at home or on the playground. For them the world is a safe place and they have no need for emotional radar.
A few years ago, in a trauma group I was leading, a woman shared about her afternoon and the fearful event she had endured just prior to group. She was in a McDonalds parking lot when two men in hoodies, with the hoods up, approached her in the twilight. As a victim of trauma she was keenly aware of danger and had struggled all her life to trust men, especially strangers. Some time in her past she had been attacked by men, beaten and raped. That late afternoon in the parking lot her radar came on and the meter went through the roof. As she walked across the parking lot she felt her pulse quicken, she began to sweat. She started to panic. In her mind she imagined violations galore and began to catastophize and soon found herself running to the door of the restaurant, in a state of extreme duress. She grabbed the door, threw it open, and fled into the bright lights.
From where she was in the restaurant she watched in horror as the two predators entered the restaurant, pulled down their hoodies and…
… they were ten or eleven year old boys who were completely oblivious to her presence.
One the primary characteristics of PTSD and trauma is something called ‘hyper-vigilance’.
That night in group we talked at length about her fear, born in trauma and pain. It was the beginning of a journey for her, one that takes far longer than people want to admit, filled with counseling and discomfort and setbacks. A journey to freedom. As we say in counseling – trauma trumps everything. What that means is that if you have experienced severe trauma that depression or anxiety you are feeling may not just be because you have situational issues right now that are bringing you down. You need to deal with your emotional trauma, before it ruins the rest of your life. It is a difficult journey but a necessary one. Get help. Talk to a counselor who understands trauma and doesn’t suck.
You’re worth it.
Related articles
- Why Reliving Your Trauma Only Goes So Far (psychologytoday.com)
- How Trauma Leads to Depression (everydayhealth.com)
- Depression: How To Feel Like A Loser (scott-williams.ca)
- Guest blogging for Scott WIlliams on Self Blame (and this on responsibility) (ruleofstupid.wordpress.com)
scott-williams.ca 
You said, “Trauma does weird things to people. Some other day I will talk about the link between trauma and hoarding, or people who can’t seem to finish projects, or those who go from romantic relationship to romantic relationship and consistently make bad decisions. People with trauma often repaint their house too often, or have spending or drug addictions, or have difficulty making decisions. Most trauma survivors become control freaks. Trauma has a way of twisting us emotionally and relationally, of creating fear and insecurity.”
Have you talked about that in another post yet? Because here is me:
Hoarding: CHECK
Cannot finish projects: CHECK
Romantic relationship to romantic relationship: CHECK
Consistently making bad decisions: CHECK
Repainting the house too often: (I am dying to but I cannot afford paint!)
Spending on drug addictions: CHECK
Difficulty making decisions: CHECK
Control freak: CHECK
Fear: CHECK
Insecurity: CHECK
Oh, and Trauma: CHECK
What the hell is wrong with me, I wonder? I want off this merry-go-round. 😦
XOXO,
Ava
I’m going to have to put down a list of the 35 or so that we noticed in our Trauma group, so many years ago. It’s a bit of a project though so I’ll need some time.
Thank you for your commitment to helping others.. You rock.
I’ve never really thought about the connection between intuition and trauma! But I believe that you are RIGHT! There are times when my mind “is on” and there are times when it’s not! I let my guard down when I’m with people I trust … I need to tweet this because it really does need to be read by people …
that’s cool. it’s only a theory but seems to make sense.
“When people come into my office and tell me, very early in a conversation, that they are ‘intuitive’ and ‘can see into people’ I often wonder if they have had trauma. The longer I do this for a living the more I realize that some of us developed our insights into humanity as a protection mechanism.—I am in complete agreement with this statement. I am one of those people. I know when someone is sad, angry or not the norm–even if what they are presenting on the outside is happy. And I grew up in a volatile household with my parents having horrendous fights and to this day anything can set my mother off into a rage. Yes, this heighted sense of perception into people’s emotions are a defense mechanism—it’s how you keep yourself safe in an unsafe environment.
Interesting … I have had discussion on PTSD … whether I suffer from it … reads more ….
Real insight also tells you when people are not a threat, as well as when they are. I’ve found myself surprisingly able to tell when I could trust someone, and when someone I really knew very little bit about would turn out to be a worthwhile person to make the leap and rely on. That part is, I think, a gift.
What happens if you are intuitive….but have not had a tramatic situation in the past? Does God play a part?
As I often have to admit, I deal in generalities. In no way would I allege that you have to have trauma to be intuitive. I’m fairly certain there are people out there who are intuitive without the pain.
Reblogged this on FROM THE DARK.
I had no idea that I had a traumatic childhood until I got older and had a car accident and a nervous breakdown resulted due to my limitations from my injuries. After 6 years of therapy I am still uncovering the subtle internal emotional trauma I lived with everyday. Unfortunately my other siblings have not begun to dig deep enough to begin to heal and it is heartbreaking to watch them crutch on relationships, drugs, alcohol, and the highly reactive illusion of control etc. No matter how much I share how wonderful therapy has been for me, or how much less symptomatic they can see that I am now. It is hard to sit by and watch them rise and then fall, feeling helpless as all my effort to help them grow seem useless until THEY choose to pursue a healthy mindset. Praying for them. Great post. Thank you for sharing. Blessings to you!