The Nervous System and Trauma: Why You Can’t Just “Get Over It”
Why Trauma Isn’t Something You Can Just “Get Over”
If you’ve ever been told to “move on” or “just get over it,” you know how invalidating that can feel. Trauma doesn’t disappear because you will it away. That’s because trauma isn’t just a memory. Trauma is stored in your nervous system long after the experience is over.
When something overwhelming happens, your body reacts automatically. Your nervous system decides: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. If that survival energy never gets adaptively processed, it lingers. This is why months or even years later, you may:
Get triggered by reminders of the past
Feel anxious, hypervigilant, or restless
Go numb or shut down when stressed
Carry chronic tension or unexplained physical symptoms
Your nervous system is doing its job. It’s doing exactly what it learned to do to keep you safe. But those same protective responses can keep you stuck.
Trauma Lives in the Body
Unlike everyday stress, trauma imprints itself into the body. Even when the danger has passed, your nervous system may still act as if it’s happening right now. That’s why you can’t always “think your way out of it”.
Talk therapy alone may not reach these deeper layers. To truly heal, you might be someone who needs approaches that also work with the body and nervous system.
How Trauma Therapy Helps Reset the Nervous System
Therapies like EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Polyvagal Therapy help you:
Reprocess traumatic memories so they lose their overwhelming charge
Teach your nervous system how to return to safety and regulation
Build resilience so stress doesn’t automatically send you into fight, flight, or freeze
Reconnect with yourself and others without feeling hijacked by the past
You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
If you’ve been frustrated by advice to “just get over it,” know this: what you’re experiencing is real, valid, and changeable.
With the right support, your nervous system can learn that it’s safe to rest, connect, and live fully in the present.
👉 If you’re in Ohio and looking for a trauma therapist, I’d love to support you. Reach out to schedule a free consultation today.
