An effect of trauma

Holding your breath or not being able to breathe deeply

Trauma lives in the breath. Chronic shallow breathing, breath holding without realizing it, difficulty taking a full deep breath, breathing that is tight and high in the chest rather than full and low in the belly. The body braces against threat and the breath is one of the first places that bracing shows up and one of the last places it lets go. Many survivors do not realize how much they have been holding their breath until someone points it out.

It can sound like

“I hold my breath without realizing it.” “I struggle to take a deep breath.” “My chest feels tight.” “I breathe too fast.” “I was told to take a deep breath and realized I did not know how.”

If any of those sentences live in your head too, you are in good company here.

Experiences this often follows

Effects do not come from nowhere. These are some of the experiences that people who carry this one often describe. You do not need to have been through any of them for what you feel to be real.

Nothing on this page is a diagnosis, and nothing here decides what is wrong with you, because nothing is wrong with you. Something happened to you. This page exists so that when you are ready, you can find people who understand it from the inside.

You do not have to carry this alone.

Bridge of Hope Recovery is a free, anonymous, peer-led fellowship for trauma survivors. Meetings run throughout the week by phone, by video, and in person. No cost, no waitlist, no one asking for your real name.

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