In today’s world, discussions about mental health and wellbeing are more prominent than ever. Organisations are rolling out wellbeing policies, and people are increasingly open to discussing their struggles. Yet, despite these advancements, many still feel stuck. Traditional talk therapy, while validating, often fails to heal, and workplace wellbeing programs seem ineffective, with absenteeism rates continuing to rise. What’s missing? The answer lies in understanding trauma and the nervous system’s role in shaping our experiences.
Talk Therapy: Validation Without Healing
Talk therapy has long been considered a cornerstone of mental health treatment. It provides a crucial space for individuals to feel heard and validated, but for many, it doesn’t address the root cause of their distress. Trauma, often left unexplored, remains lodged in the body and mind, leading to a sense of stagnation. People feel as though they are talking about their experiences but not truly healing from them.
Trauma is more than just a painful memory; it’s a profound experience that changes the way our body and mind function. Traditional talk therapy focuses on cognitive and emotional processing but often overlooks the body’s role in holding and expressing trauma. This can leave individuals feeling re-traumatized rather than relieved, as they revisit painful memories without the tools to release the trauma from their bodies.
Wellbeing Washing: The Illusion of Care in the Workplace
In the workplace, wellbeing has become a buzzword, signalling an organisation’s commitment to its employees’ mental and physical health. However, many of these initiatives are surface-level, offering temporary relief rather than addressing underlying issues. This phenomenon, known as “wellbeing washing,” gives the illusion of care but fails to create a meaningful impact.
Despite more organisations having wellbeing policies, absenteeism due to mental health issues is at an all-time high. Employees are burning out, not because they lack access to wellbeing resources, but because these resources do not address the root causes of their distress. Trauma, whether from personal life, workplace stress, or past experiences, is a significant but often overlooked factor.
Trauma and the Nervous System: The Heart of Our Lived Experience
At the core of trauma and mental health is our nervous system, which governs our lived experience by interpreting and perceiving the world around us. These deeply ingrained programs dictate how we live our lives, often without our conscious awareness. To truly heal, we must become aware of our nervous system’s responses and learn how to regulate them, bringing ourselves back to a state of balance, or homeostasis.
Education around our nervous system is key to understanding how trauma impacts us. Our autonomic nervous system is constantly responding to both our internal and external environments. When it perceives a threat, whether real or imagined, it triggers a survival response—fight, flight, or freeze. If this response becomes chronic, it can lead to long-term issues such as anxiety, depression, and physical ailments.
Understanding and Compassion: The Path to Healing
Understanding the science of the nervous system helps us develop more compassion for ourselves and others. It allows us to see behaviours not as personal failings, but as responses to perceived threats. When we recognize that someone’s brain might “go offline” in a stressful environment—whether at work, at home, or with friends—we can respond with empathy rather than judgement.
For example, at work, when someone appears unable to focus, becomes anxious, or is overly argumentative, their nervous system might be in a state of fight-or-flight (sympathetic state) or feeling numb and disconnected (dorsal vagal state). Instead of asking, “What’s wrong with them?” we should ask, “What has happened to them?” This shift in perspective allows us to approach others with compassion and understanding, helping them feel seen, heard, and supported.
Creating Supportive Environments: Actions That Help
A supportive environment can make a significant difference in how individuals cope with their nervous system responses. Simple actions like active listening, providing reassurance, promoting a calm workspace, or suggesting a short walk can help down-regulate the nervous system, allowing the person to feel safe and return to a state of calm.
When the nervous system calms down, the brain can come back online, allowing for clearer thinking and more effective problem-solving. This is because when we are in a heightened state of arousal, we dip into our limbic system—the emotional part of our brain where trauma is stored—making it difficult to think rationally and clearly.
Trauma-Informed Approaches: Seeing the Driver Behind Behaviours
To be trauma-informed is to see the driver behind behaviours, with less judgment and more curiosity. We are constantly navigating our own and others’ nervous systems, and by showing compassion and connection, we help those around us feel heard, seen, and understood.
Ultimately, all we strive for as humans is to feel safe and be seen, heard, and understood. Creating environments, whether in therapy or in the workplace, where people feel this way improves emotional wellbeing and enables true healing.
Conclusion: Completing the Wellbeing Puzzle
Trauma is the missing piece in the wellbeing and mental health puzzle. By understanding the nervous system and addressing trauma, we can move beyond symptom management to truly heal the underlying issues. Whether in therapy, at work, or in our daily interactions, approaching others with compassion and curiosity can create a world where people are not just surviving, but thriving. It’s time to stop treating the symptoms and start healing the trauma, completing the wellbeing puzzle once and for all.
