PART I: Telltale Signs of Untreated Childhood Trauma

Clinical depression is so prevalent these days that well over 21 million Americans experience it every year. Most come to understand the origin of their depression, but sometimes people only have a vague idea as to why they are experiencing persistent, clinical depression. For those individuals who don't know the origin of their depression, looking back on their childhood may be extremely helpful, even life-giving. Understanding the negative effects of untreated childhood trauma can be life-giving, even life-saving, especially when depression affects ones physical health. Here is my story involving the telltale signs of childhood trauma in my own life.

In my youth, and later into adulthood, I felt depressed, anxious, and 'less than.'

Highlights

By Chaplain Adele M. Gill
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
1/31/2018 (6 years ago)

Published in Blog

Keywords: Catholic, Christian, healing, hope, Jesus, depression, childhood trauma, PTSD, anxiety, Pope Francis, Adele M. Gill, Adele Gill, From Broken to Blest: Embracing the Healing that Awaits You

In my youth, and later into adulthood, I felt depressed, anxious, and 'less than' more often than I care to admit, which colored the way I looked at myself, others, and the world-at-large - but I did not understand why I felt that way. Having endured physical, sexual, and mental abuse in my youth, I came to doubt my own existence, and self-worth. Though resolved, the truth is that my self-esteem was always an issue then as I grew up in poverty with my abusive schizophrenic mother and my father who was involved in the Mafia, who took me with him while doing 'business.'

I was diagnosed with depression in early adulthood, but chose not to treat it in part due to the stigma associated with psychiatric illness and care, and was unwilling to take depression meds or seek help. At that time, I was unsure as to why I had depression in the first place, as my life was going well and I was living my dream of becoming a wife, mother and registered nurse. But eventually I learned that it was repressed and suppressed memories related to my childhood that were the issue affecting both my mental health and physical health.

Looking back, the mind-body illnesses I experienced could have been anticipated given my upbringing, but I was initially not yet in touch with the untreated childhood trauma I endured. My memories were blocked until I started having flashbacks and nightmares about 10 years ago, and the root of the problem became crystal clear. It was not one event that caused the trauma and stress. It was my early family life itself, and a series of traumatic life events that made me sick physically and emotionally later in adulthood. The enduring effects of untreated childhood trauma became so intense that I felt overwhelmed, lost and alone much of the time, having lived in daily turmoil and poverty through my youth. And that carried over into my adulthood years, as my own 'trifecta,' the tell-tale signs of untreated childhood trauma, rolled in overtime including unrelenting depression, childhood associated PTSD, and a serious neuro-autoimmune disorder, which often goes hand in hand.

The latter is what forced me to look at my traumatic childhood for what it was - something I had avoided at all costs. In truth, I had little choice but to seek the truth, as my physical and emotional health depended on it. Eventually, I learned from my medical team that my autoimmune system had been damaged by the early childhood trauma, and that, in turn, was damaging my central nervous system. 

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I got to the point where I could no longer deny things that had happened to me. What had transpired in my youth was making me chronically and acutely ill, both physically and emotionally, and I could no longer function in my daily life. I had met the proverbial wall, so to speak. I could not work, could not walk even short distances without long arm crutches, then a walker. Then my medical condition progressed, and I was bedridden and in a wheelchair for twelve years, had blurred vision, and garbled speech. Mind-body illnesses had taken over my life and I no longer had the privilege of pushing aside the memories of the trauma that had occurred. Eventually, I found myself sick and disabled by depression, PTSD, mobility impairment, and exacerbations of respiratory muscle weakness and generalized weakness requiring a home BiPAP ventilator 14-16 hours per twenty-four hour day. 

Once my medical team and I finally made the connection between untreated childhood trauma and mind-body illness, there was no turning back. I had to heal, and to do so, I had to face where I had been and what I had experienced, painful as it was. Though I still have neuro-autoimmune exacerbations and remissions, and frequently receive IV steroids and IVIG treatments to quell symptoms when acutely in need of medical care, I now have a new life since dealing with my untreated childhood trauma. 

Most of all, I have hope now. For it is only with Jesus' help that I was able to heal from depression and PTSD and begin to flourish and get on with my life. I believe it was faith-filled prayers, and God's grace that healed me, through the prayers of many people who prayed fervently for me. What a tremendous blessing...the gift of faith! 

To be continued ...See Part II

© Copyright 2018  |  Distributed by News Consortium

Adapted from the new book, 'From Broken to Blest: Embracing the Healing that Awaits You' by Adele M. Gill and Dr. Verna Benner Carson.

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