CHILDHOOD TRAUMA CAUSES ADDICTION AND ADDICTION CAUSES TRAUMA
Addiction is any behavior that gives pleasure but ultimately is harmful and yet there is a compulsion to continue a destructive cycle that has consequences in many areas of your life. Addiction is not limited to drugs, alcohol but can be work, gym, relationships, technology etc. The addiction serves as a way to soothe pain and an attempt to deal with a “problem”.
Why Addiction Starts With Trauma
Many people who struggle with addiction don’t realize that it’s rooted in unhealed trauma. When you’ve experienced emotional, physical, or relational pain that felt too big to process, you may have learned to numb yourself — reaching for substances, food, work, or relationships just to quiet the hurt. Over time, these coping strategies can become a painful cycle of dependency and shame.
You don’t have to keep living this way. At Ronee Miller Counseling in Tribeca, NYC, I offer in-person therapy to help you heal the wounds beneath your addiction and find a new way forward. Call me today at 📞 (212) 349-6544 or click here to visit my website to begin your healing journey.
When we are babies we are helpless and dependent on our caregivers but if our caregivers are emotionally dysregulated and stressed out, abusive .chaotic, and unable to nurture and soothe then the babies nervous system becomes unable to deal with stress in a healthy way as the caregivers are directly effecting the babies developing brain and causing increased cortisol(stress hormone) So as a child develops the child has no resources to soothe themselves when stressed and looks for external ways to soothe rather than internal.
.Childhood Attachment Trauma occurs as the baby is unable to feel safe in their body and not having any hope to be comforted . See ”Keys To Feeling Safe In Your Body” Addictions are an attempt to comfort but just as the baby became disconnected from self as no one was there to nurture and help the baby to internalize a “soothing” relationship with the caregiver:: addictions then cause multiple trauma and reinjury. Childhood Attachment trauma develops when as a child we do not have the opportunity to have a secure attachment bond formed and this causes a disconnect from oneself and an inability to regulate one’s emotions. Relationships are where we learn to regulate or dysregulate our emotions.
TRAUMA:DISCONNECTION FROM SELF
How does the disconnection from yourself effect your life now? The past is important only in how it effects the present, Addiction keeps you in a disconnection with yourself. You have gotten a message when you were most vulnerable that your emotions do not matter and that you are not valuable. Shame is: “I am a mistake” and shame fuels self hatred and emotional shutdown and the building of a “false self” rather than a deep knowing that what you need, feel, think really does matter and that in order to go forward in your healing your focus needs to be on who “truly” are.: Becoming “authentically you” without a need to distance or numb yourself from you and allowing yourself to become fully alive(as you “reclaim YOU”)
Time to give yourself the attention you so desperately need and have self care become an integral part of your life style. Self care includes giving yourself time to be with yourself and with others that are “safe” connections. We learn how to regulate our emotions in relationships so it s important who you allow to get close to you…you are precious and not for everyone!
What Therapy With Me Is Like
Therapy with me is a calm, compassionate space where your story and your pain are honored. In my warm, pet-friendly home office in Tribeca, NYC, you’ll be able to talk about your struggles with addiction without fear of judgment — and begin to see how your past has shaped your patterns today.
We’ll move at your pace, uncovering the hidden wounds of trauma and helping you find healthier, more self-compassionate ways to cope. At Ronee Miller Counseling, you’ll begin to believe that you are worthy of healing — and capable of breaking free from the cycle. Call 📞 (212) 349-6544 or click here to visit my website today.
🌿 An Invitation to Break Free
You are more than your pain — and you deserve a life that isn’t defined by addiction or trauma.
I invite you to take the first step at Ronee Miller Counseling in Tribeca, NYC, where you’ll find the support and guidance to heal, grow, and discover who you truly are. Call 📞 (212) 349-6544 or click here to visit my website today. It would be my honor to walk alongside you on your path to wholeness.