When Past Trauma Punches Us in the Face

Trauma can shape us but doesn’t have to define us

Often my reaction to confronting past trauma. Photo by Baylee Gramling on Unsplash

*Warning: This essay discusses trauma, including child abuse, but does not contain graphic descriptions

A smell, voice, or sound can take us from our present lives and plop us back into the worst trauma we’ve ever experienced. We panic and reel as old, gnarled scars are painfully poked…