Psychological traumas are not always immediately noticeable. They exist within a person, like a shadow that accompanies them day after day. People live for decades with the consequences of these traumas and may not even realize how they manifest.
What pain lies behind psychological traumas? Answers Elena Yarikhova, psychologist.
Alcoholism: An Attempt to Forget
Alcohol is one of the most common ways to "treat" inner pain. For many, it becomes a means to escape from heavy memories, anxiety, or feelings of inadequacy.
In the first moments, it indeed creates an illusion of lightness, relaxation, even happiness. But in reality, it is just a way to temporarily switch off consciousness. The more severe the trauma, the higher the risk that a person will resort to alcohol more frequently until it begins to control their entire life.
Gambling Addiction: The Illusion of Control
Gambling, betting, online casinos, and even seemingly harmless computer games can be not entertainment, but an escape from reality. Often, they are rooted in traumas related to feelings of powerlessness and loss of control.
A person who has experienced humiliation or a lack of influence over their life (for example, a lack of a voice in the family during childhood) finds "compensation" in the game. Here, they can win, prove to themselves and others that they are capable of managing the situation. But this control is illusory, while the destruction is real.
Overeating: Comfort Through Taste
Sometimes people drown their feelings of anxiety, sadness, or loneliness with food. This is especially characteristic of those who lacked warmth and care in childhood. Sweets and delicious dishes replace the feeling of safety and love.
The problem is that psychological emptiness cannot be filled with calories. And the more a person tries to fill it with food, the stronger the dependence grows, which can lead to excess weight, diseases, and even greater dissatisfaction with oneself.
Addiction to Gadgets and Social Media: Escape into Virtuality
It seems that scrolling through a feed or responding to messages is a harmless habit. But if a person spends hours on their phone, it becomes an addiction. This is particularly common among those who fear being alone with themselves.
Social media provides a constant stream of distraction: likes instead of approval, memes instead of support, chats instead of real communication. But the root of the problem lies in the trauma of loneliness and rejection, which makes the "virtual world" more comfortable than the real one.
Workaholism: Approval at Any Cost
Not all addictions appear destructive. For example, workaholism is often praised: "What a hard worker, toiling without rest." But behind this often lies trauma from rejection and the feeling of "I'm not good enough."
A person hopes that if they work harder than others, they will achieve success and approval, and finally feel their worth. In reality, however, inner emptiness is not filled with achievements, and chronic fatigue and emotional burnout become the price to pay.
An Unpleasant but Important Truth
Regardless of the form — alcohol, food, gadgets, work, or relationships — the essence is the same: addiction becomes an attempt to escape from the pain left by psychological trauma. It is not about pleasure, but about survival. But none of these methods heal; they only temporarily mask suffering.
Psychological traumas always hurt. They can be ignored, attempted to escape from, but they will return — in the form of addictions, conflicts, and illnesses. This truth is unpleasant, but everyone should know it: without working through the trauma, a person will never be truly free.
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