Turns out, working through all that mental and emotional trauma can absolutely take a physical toll.
Feeling like sh*t after therapy?
It’s not (all) in your head.
Photo: Btihal Remli/Getty Images
Your body may respond in visceral ways to intense therapy sessions.
These therapy hangover symptoms can range from muscle aches to panic attacks.
You may have experienced this very real phenomenon without even noticing.
Was your last migraine on the same day as your last psychotherapy visit?
Did you see your therapist and feel completely depleted for the rest of the day?
You’re not alone.
We turned to therapists to better understand the ‘why’ behind this physical response to tough therapy sessions.
First, What Is Trauma Therapy?
This phenomenon is especially relevant when undergoing trauma therapy.
Many people experience some form of trauma, whether they realize it or not.
“Therapy, particularly trauma therapy, always gets worse before it gets better,” says Westbrook.
It’s something Leaf calls “the treatment effect.”
“[These symptoms are] very normal and natural, and a perfect example of the mind-body connection.
Wellness isn’t just our physical being, but our mental being it’s all connected.”
Westbrook says stress can be used as an everyday example to better contextualize and understand this.
“Stress is one of the most common feelings in our daily lives,” she says.
And sometimes they actually do!"
This is magnified in trauma therapy.
Packing Away Bad Feelings
You’re likely bringing more to your therapy session than you realize.
Hence, stored trauma.
But don’t feel bad about feeling “bad” youneedto feel those feelings!
Trauma In, Trauma Out
All that packed trauma?
And it makes sense that bringing painful memories and experiences into your consciousness will feel uncomfortable.
“What compounds all those stored stressors is psychological distress and mental illness,” says Breland-Noble.
Psychotherapy affects brain chemistry, and this, in turn, is expressed through physical symptoms."
Breland-Noble shared that this has shown up in epigenetic studies of Black patients.
Translation: The trauma of racism makes actual changes to how their DNA is expressed.
All from trying to feelbetter but remember, it does get better.
you could prepare for this (very necessary) work.
Because everyone’s brain is different, there are different approaches to this.
I faced down those demons and won.
The things that disturb me are in the past.
My life is here in the present and in the future.
What tried to beat me down failed, and I’ve triumphed.'"
All those things can help your body stay strong against mental and physical stress.
“Others do best by having time to themselves to organize their thoughts.”
It Does Get Better!
Think of it as the anxiety before you do something really scary or daunting.
It’s typically worse and more intense than the test itself, right?
That’s what [trauma therapy] can be like."
moment and feel like a new person), says Westbrook.
If you’re experiencing therapy hangover symptoms, get some rest.
Take some ibuprofen if you’ve got a headache.
Binge Netflix, make tea, take a bath, call a friend, orprovide yourself with cozy self-care.
It’s not frivolous or overindulgent or selfish to ensure you heal properly.
You’re doing unimaginably difficult work.
