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| By Safe Call Now®'s Dr. Laura Brodie |
As I work in treatment with individuals who
have a reaction to trauma that is debilitating, I have found that there is a
core issue that appears to be evident in many of these individuals. That is the issue of a poor or absent support
system prior to the trauma. Many who I
see afflicted with trauma worked as the strong support system for others prior
to their emotional damage. They report to me that they received little comfort
for leaning on others for support. They were seen as strong and capable so
others assumed they could handle anything. Giving guidance, support and help to
others comes so naturally to these people, but being the person in need is many
times the greatest fear. Why?
People who are caretakers in the world do not
take kindly to being taken care of. This comes from a sense of identity that
formed quite early in life where giving was much more comfortable than
receiving. Being the low maintenance child was the role in the family and
wanting to make parents proud, because little problems and keeping anxieties
secret were the M.O. Many times these
people are high achievers who are the ones others turn to for support. What is
not realized is caretaking becomes a great skill for caring for the other, but
caretaking of the self is a very foreign concept. Not wanting to be an
emotional burden is a feeling that developed early in life and as an adult it
becomes the attitude of “I’m fine” even when he or she knows things are not
fine at all.
Handling trauma when you have previously been
used to a life of self-sufficiency is like asking to be the patient when you
have always been the therapist. It does not work well. The isolation of being
“fine” at all times does not work as memories and thoughts attack. Now trapped
in his or her own mind, all the advice and counseling given to others is
forgotten and the person is left vulnerable. Again I ask why?
