by Vanessa H. Roddenberry, Ph.D.
Uncovering the Hidden Roots of How Trauma Affects Mental Health
Each May, Mental Health Awareness Month offers a valuable opportunity to pause, reflect, and elevate the dialogue around emotional well-being. While public campaigns have made impressive strides in destigmatizing depression, anxiety, and other diagnoses, there remains a critical—and often unspoken—dimension of mental health that warrants deeper attention: trauma. In this instance, we are not necessarily referring to the obvious conceptualization of trauma, but the kind that is insidious, relational, formative, and ubiquitous. Subsequently, it is vital to understand how trauma affects your mental health.
For many individuals, the symptoms that bring them into therapy are not arbitrary or surface-level. Rather, they are echoes of early life experiences—schemas formed in the crucible of unmet needs, misattunement, betrayal, or neglect. Understanding these deeper structures is not just a therapeutic exercise in self-awareness. It is a necessary act of liberation. When we do not understand the origins of our mental and emotional struggles, we risk pathologizing ourselves, blaming our perceived failures on character flaws rather than context. In short, we remain stuck.
Accordingly, as trauma specialists, at Breyta Psychological Services our commitment to trauma-informed care is rooted in a fundamental premise: that most mental health difficulties can be traced, at least in part, to patterns that formed in the context of early relationships. These patterns—what schema therapists and developmental psychologists might call “core beliefs” or “internal working models”—shape not only how we feel about ourselves, but how we interpret the world, engage with others, and move through life. They form the invisible architecture of our mental health.
The Schema-Level Impact of Trauma
Schemas are cognitive-affective blueprints that guide our interpretation of events. They develop early in life, often in response to persistent relational dynamics. A child who learns that love must be earned, for instance, may develop a schema of unworthiness or conditional value. That schema, unexamined, might lead to adult patterns of perfectionism, people-pleasing, burnout, or a tendency to tolerate mistreatment.
Such patterns are not random. They are protective adaptations—originally functional, but now often maladaptive. In this light, depression is not simply low mood; it may be the result of chronic self-silencing, disconnection, or internalized helplessness. Anxiety may not be an overactive threat system alone, but the residue of growing up in an unpredictable or emotionally chaotic environment.
Even high-achieving, outwardly composed individuals may live under the weight of unexamined schemas. The drive to succeed, to be perfect, to anticipate others’ needs—these can be trauma responses masquerading as personality traits. Without inquiry, many people internalize their suffering as evidence of brokenness rather than adaptation. Therapy helps uncover these hidden frameworks and provides space to challenge and rewire them.
Crucially, this understanding widens our lens beyond formal diagnoses. It recognizes that many people suffer without meeting criteria for a mental disorder. Their suffering is still real. It is structured by schemas that trace back to trauma in the broadest, most inclusive sense of the word—trauma that is relational, cumulative, and socially embedded (Herman, 1992; Yehuda & Lehrner, 2018). Thus, it’s inevitable that the experience of trauma would impact mental health.
Relational Trauma: Ubiquity and Misrecognition
Relational trauma is perhaps the most pervasive and least acknowledged form of psychological injury. Unlike acute trauma (e.g., accidents, assaults), relational trauma often occurs subtly and chronically, shaping the developing nervous system and sense of self over time. It includes experiences such as:
- Emotional invalidation or neglect
- Parentification or enmeshment
- Chronic criticism or conditional approval
- Unpredictable caregiving due to a caregiver’s own mental illness or addiction
- Growing up in environments lacking emotional safety or consistency
These forms of trauma rarely make headlines, but they live in the body and psyche. They affect emotional regulation, relational capacity, self-concept, and even physical health. They are not always remembered as “traumatic” because they are normalized within the family or culture. As such, many adults do not identify as having experienced trauma at all—until they begin to trace the lines back and recognize the patterns (Felitti et al., 1998). Yet, there is no doubt; trauma affects one’s mental health.
Moreover, relational trauma often interferes with one’s sense of identity and trust. Individuals may struggle with boundaries, emotional expression, or internalized self-criticism. The effects are cumulative, leading to exhaustion, a sense of isolation, and difficulty sustaining healthy relationships. Recognizing these patterns is a pivotal step toward reclaiming agency.
Trauma Is Not the Whole Story—But It Shapes the Plot
Understanding trauma as a foundation of mental health issues does not negate biology, choice, or resilience. Rather, it provides context. It allows us to ask not “What’s wrong with me?” but “What happened to me—and what did I have to believe about myself to survive it?”
Trauma-informed care does not reduce people to their wounds. It sees symptoms as messengers; inviting a shift from self-judgment to self-understanding, from shame to compassion, and from reactivity to intentionality. It validates the reality that many symptoms—avoidance, emotional numbness, hypervigilance, perfectionism, chronic guilt—are not disorders in isolation. They are relational strategies that have become embedded in the psyche.
Therapy, then, becomes not just a place to reduce symptoms, but a space for deconstructing inherited narratives. This approach aligns closely with the principles of Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), developed by Patricia Resick and colleagues, which is grounded in social cognitive theory. CPT proposes that trauma can disrupt pre-existing beliefs about safety, trust, power/control, esteem, and intimacy—leading to distorted cognitions that perpetuate distress. By examining and changing their relationship to these beliefs, our clients are empowered to regain clarity and agency in their lives (Resick, Monson, & Chard, 2017). It invites our clients to explore how their internal rules were formed, and whether those rules still serve them. Through this process, individuals can develop greater psychological flexibility and the capacity to respond in meaningful ways, rather than react (Hayes et al., 2012).
The Layers of Impact: Individual, Interpersonal, Generational, Ecosystem
Trauma does not occur in a vacuum. Its ripple effects touch every layer of the human experience:
- Individual: Trauma alters the way we interpret our emotions, goals, and worth. It often restricts our capacity for joy, rest, and authenticity. Emotional dysregulation, cognitive distortions, and negative self-appraisals often follow (Linehan, 1993).
- Interpersonal: It shapes how we attach, how we communicate, and how we defend ourselves in relationships. Trauma survivors may oscillate between hyper-independence and desperate longing for connection. Trust may be difficult, boundaries may be porous, and conflict may trigger disproportionate fear responses.
- Generational: Unresolved trauma is often passed down. Children absorb the emotional tone of their caregivers. Without intervention, the patterns continue, often in subtler forms. Epigenetic research suggests trauma can even alter gene expression across generations (Yehuda & Bierer, 2009).
- Community: Trauma concentrates in communities affected by poverty, violence, discrimination, and marginalization. These contexts create chronic stress, reduce access to care, and increase risk for both physical and mental health issues. Healing here must include systemic reform and cultural acknowledgment.
- Ecosystem: Trauma work must also consider the broader ecology of being. Humans do not exist in isolation—we are embedded in social, environmental, and planetary systems. Environmental degradation, climate anxiety, forced migration, and ecological grief represent emerging frontiers of trauma. Healing trauma thus also means deepening our empathy for other beings, our communities, and the Earth itself. A more attuned nervous system is often a more attuned citizen of the world.
In sum, we believe that to see trauma in this multidimensional way is not to dilute its meaning, but to recognize its ubiquity—and the imperative to respond. Inversely, healing trauma at the individual level has far-reaching benefits for every sphere of influence in which we exist.
Healing as a Form of Resistance and Renewal
Healing from trauma is not just a personal act. It is relational, cultural, and even political. To tend to our mental health with seriousness and compassion is to refuse the legacy of silence and suppression. It is to reclaim our right to feel, to name, to mourn, and to reimagine.
At Breyta, we often say that healing trauma heals the world. This is not a platitude. It is an observable truth. When individuals understand their schemas, process their pain, and develop psychological flexibility, they show up differently. This results in changes in their parenting, partnerships, and professional life. The ripple effect is not abstract; it is measurable in the quality of relationships and the tenor of community.
To heal from trauma is not to forget the past but to transform its influence. It is to shift from merely surviving to intentionally living. It is to become the author of one’s story rather than the character cast by someone else’s wounds.
Practical Pathways Forward
Healing does not happen in isolation. It is supported by community, relationship, and professional guidance. Trauma-informed therapy offers an integrative approach that combines emotional validation, cognitive restructuring, and behavioral change.
Evidence-based practices such as Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) help clients move through avoidance, make sense of painful experiences, and align with values. At Breyta, we incorporate these models while honoring the uniqueness of each client’s story.
We also acknowledge that trauma is not just what happened, but what was missing—nurture, consistency, attunement, protection. Therapy becomes a space where these missed experiences can be symbolically “re-parented,” where individuals can internalize safety, stability, and care.
Group therapy, mindfulness practices, somatic work, and expressive arts therapies also offer powerful adjuncts to traditional talk therapy, particularly for clients with complex trauma. Self-compassion, psychoeducation, and meaning-making are foundational in moving toward post-traumatic growth.
Looking Ahead: Healing Trauma to Health Mental Health
And so, this May, we invite you to think differently about mental health. Not as a fixed state to achieve, but as a dynamic process of integration. Not as the absence of symptoms, but as the presence of insight, regulation, connection, and meaning.
Healing is possible—not by erasing the past, but by understanding how it lives within us. By transforming the architecture of our inner world, we make space for new ways of being.
That is the essence of trauma-informed care, and that is the heartbeat of Breyta. Learn more about our trauma therapy services here. We offer individual therapy and couples therapy to address ways trauma may be affecting your life.
If you are wondering whether therapy might be the next right step for you, we invite you to reach out. Visit our contact page to get answers to questions you may have, get matched with the perfect therapist for you, schedule a complimentary consultation, or schedule your first session. Your story matters—and it deserves to be heard, understood, and transformed.
References
Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., … & Marks, J. S. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults: The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245–258.
Herman, J. L. (1992). Trauma and recovery: The aftermath of violence—from domestic abuse to political terror. Basic Books.
Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy: The process and practice of mindful change (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
Linehan, M. M. (1993). Cognitive-behavioral treatment of borderline personality disorder. Guilford Press.
Resick, P. A., Monson, C. M., & Chard, K. M. (2017). Cognitive Processing Therapy for PTSD: A Comprehensive Manual. Guilford Press.
Yehuda, R., & Bierer, L. M. (2009). The relevance of epigenetics to PTSD: Implications for the DSM-V. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 22(5), 427–434.
Yehuda, R., & Lehrner, A. (2018). Intergenerational transmission of trauma effects: Putative role of epigenetic mechanisms. World Psychiatry, 17(3), 243–257.
Learn More with These Mental Health Resources
Mental Health America – Understanding Trauma & PTSD
American Psychological Association (APA) – Trauma
National Institute of Mental Health – Trauma & PTSD
