Lesson 4: Just Get Over It

You might have heard someone tell you to “just get over it” when it comes to life after trauma. Maybe you’ve even told yourself this same thing.

There might be an implication that:

• you aren’t trying hard enough

• that it isn’t difficult

• that you’re “less than” because you’re struggling

The truth is that as a trauma survivor, you’re going up against a strong challenger. Trauma affects both your mind and your body. It includes actual changes to your nervous system (that includes your brain) and your body’s ability to respond to stress. These aren’t imagined things.

Is this fair? Absolutely not. But what you have going for you is that your mind is an exceptional student! Your brain was created to change, reroute, and adapt. That’s called neuroplasticity.

Your noggin’ pays attention to patterns. If you repeat a pattern, the brain builds stronger pathways to simplify the task. That routine could be healthy or unhealthy—that doesn’t matter to the brain. It will automatically run the pattern. So as you can see, by developing a healthy routine, you’re setting your mind up for success. And if you’re wallowing in an unhealthy routine, well, you get the picture.

You must be willing to commit to reshaping your brain. That takes habit building—and that takes time.