Trauma is an increasingly common term in our society, with more and more people recognizing that individuals can, and often do, experience long-term negative impacts from traumatic experiences. This isn’t just a societal conclusion, but scientific research has proven that traumatic experiences can impact brain function and development, with serious consequences for the behaviors and health of individuals throughout their lifetime. However, there is also great hope as research also points to the power of relationships to help traumatized individuals find healing.
Studies on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have shown that childhood trauma can cause toxic stress that can alter brain development and have a long-term effect on how the body responds to stress. The CDC has observed that ACEs are linked to later-life chronic health problems, mental illness, and substance misuse in adulthood (CDC) due to the trauma survivor “continuing to organize [their] life as if the trauma were still going on – unchanged and immutable – as every new encounter or event is contaminated by the past” (Van Der Kolk). These traumatized individuals can become stuck in an internal system where “the world is experienced with a different nervous system. The survivor’s energy now becomes focused on suppressing inner chaos, at the expense of spontaneous involvement in their life” (Van Der Kolk). As a result of this internal trauma-response, the individual may experience numerous social, emotional, and cognitive effects, such as mental illness, chronic physical illness, chronic pain, attachment disorders, and more. Without proper care to address these effects of trauma, survivors have an increased likelihood of coping through risky behaviors, which can lead to developing disease, disabilities, or other social effects, that in turn increase the risk of an early death (CDC).
This slope from trauma to early death sounds drastic, however, it is an observably easy progression for survivors, especially in the behaviors that are often exhibited by trauma survivors. These behaviors stem from the brain area that is responsible for the commonly known “fight or flight response.” This area of the brain can become overwhelmed as an aftereffect of trauma and develop a ‘freeze’ reaction to stress. In this freeze reaction, individuals may be unable to act when faced with a stressful or difficult situation. They are unable to make a different choice than previous situations or create a new experience for themselves because the brain is too overwhelmed to even kick into fight or flight, much less thoughtfully consider alternative actions. Researchers on this phenomenon have said that “the mere opportunity to escape does not necessarily make traumatized people take the road to freedom… Rather than risk experimenting with new options they stay stuck in the fear they know…” (Van Der Kolk).
We must understand that traumatized individuals are stuck in this space, unable to choose a different experience on their own, and therefore healing from trauma sometimes necessitates outside assistance to move survivors toward new experiences or opportunities. Otherwise, survivors can find themselves stuck in old neural pathways, which play out in their repeated behaviors, and might be defaulted to for years and years.
Time and time again at RAHAB, we see healthy, supportive relationships as the most effective form of outside assistance to move a survivor to new opportunities for health and healing. Healthy relationships create opportunities for new neural pathways, and therefore new behaviors and healthier choices, to develop. We have seen mentors be the first adults telling teenaged mentees they are valued and loved, and watched that spark new hope and ambition for their lives. We have witnessed women with substance addiction decide to seek help because they knew they could count on the support of volunteers and staff. We have walked with women leaving abusive relationships or traffickers because they now have a model of what true love and health can look like in a relationship.
In scripture, God tells us He wants to use us to bring His will on Earth as it is in Heaven. Acts 4:14-14 states:
Now when the men of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Court) saw the confidence and boldness of Peter and John and grasped the fact that they were uneducated and untrained [ordinary] men, they were astounded and began to recognize that they had been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in reply.
God loves to use ordinary people like Peter and John. They aren’t the only ones, we see Him do this through major figures in the Bible also, like Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Rahab, Samson, Jonah, and Paul. All of these people had major failures. They weren’t perfect, but were flawed, ordinary humans. But God was not ashamed of them, instead He chose to use them in powerful ways in His story (Heb. 11:16). He still does that today, and He can use each one of us if we are willing. He can use us to heal through relationships. In fact, He calls us to make disciples, and to do so, we must be in relationship with others. By following the relational model of Jesus, He can use us to impact people around us, including those who are survivors of deep wounds, helping them to move towards health and unity with God.
God uses the ordinary people who serve as staff and volunteers at RAHAB to change lives. These individuals provide consistent, healthy, supportive relationships to those who have been traumatized by trafficking, and through those relationships, healing takes place.
This healing has been well documented in scientific data in the last 20 years under the term neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change and reorganize. The research indicates that the brain never loses the ability to adapt, change, and develop new patterns or behaviors. In fact, researchers have discovered that “psychotherapy is capable of producing measurable changes in how the brain processes both serotonin and thyroid hormone levels. Results indicate that psychotherapy and medication may affect the brain similarly with depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and panic disorder, among other conditions. Neuroplasticity in this case points toward our potential to be changed by relationships throughout our lifespan” (Schwartz).
This means that healthy relationships can mimic a psychotherapeutic model called corrective emotional experience. While previously only ascribed to this therapeutic model, it now can also refer to a mirrored healing that is observed when a survivor of trauma is in a key relationship with another individual who responds differently than the individual who is responsible for the survivor’s trauma. In fact, “over time, the traumatized person develops – after much testing – enough trust… that they feel safe in exposing their deepest feelings. When emotional situations similar to childhood occur, they can now be processed in a new, healthier way. This experience helps repair the damage produced by the traumas of the past. It can help the stunted personality become unstuck, grow and mature” (Starkman).
Within healthy relationships, there is incredible hope for survivors to heal from trauma and leave behind the behaviors they know as they attempt new experiences. This necessitates our involvement as well, however. We need to provide those healthy relationships that model Christ’s love to help others move towards healing.
If you are interested in investing in healthy relationships for women at RAHAB, apply to be a volunteer today through our Volunteer Application today: https://www.rahab-ministries.org/volunteer-application/
Bibliography:
“About the CDC-Kaiser Ace Study.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6 Apr. 2021, www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/about.html.
“Adverse Childhood Experiences (Aces).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/aces/index.html.
Colvin, Scott. “How God Uses Ordinary People to Do the Unexpected.” Deep Spirituality, 12 Apr. 2024, deepspirituality.com/god-uses-ordinary-people/.
Schwartz, Arielle. “Relationships Change Brain, Heal Attachment: Dr. Arielle Schwartz.” Arielle Schwartz, PhD, 24 Jan. 2019, drarielleschwartz.com/how-relationships-change-brain-heal-attachment-dr-arielle-schwartz/.
Starkman, Monica N. “When Childhood Trauma Meets Healing Relationships.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 30 Mar. 2017, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/call/201703/when-childhood-trauma-meets-healing-relationships.
Van der Kolk, Bessel A. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. New York, New York, Penguin Books, 2015.