Is This Trauma? A Simple Self-Assessment for Understanding Your Experience | Glasgow Trauma Therapy

When anxiety feels bigger than the situation calls for, trauma might be the missing piece of the puzzle.

Hey there! I’m Rebecca, and if you’ve found your way to this page, you might be wondering whether some of your ongoing struggles could be connected to past experiences. Many people who have experienced trauma may feel anxious or find themselves feeling overwhelmed by daily life, as these are common responses to unresolved emotional distress. Maybe your anxiety feels more intense than it “should,” or perhaps you’ve noticed patterns in how you react to certain situations that don’t quite make sense.

As a trauma therapist in Glasgow, I’ve worked with countless clients who initially came seeking help for anxiety, panic attacks, or social fears, only to discover that unprocessed trauma was actually driving many of their symptoms. I always tailor therapy to the individual client, recognizing that trauma can have adverse effects on both mental and physical well-being, including issues like low self esteem. Whether you’re looking for trauma therapy in Glasgow or simply trying to understand your experiences better, this assessment can provide valuable insight. Trauma counselling can also offer additional support for those struggling with these challenges, helping you explore your experiences in a safe environment and develop healthier coping techniques.

Understanding Trauma Beyond the Obvious

When most people think of trauma, they picture major life-threatening events. While these certainly qualify, trauma actually encompasses any distressing events or traumatic experience that overwhelmed your ability to cope at the time it happened. This might include:

Emotional neglect or inconsistent caregiving in childhood
Bullying or social rejection during formative years
Medical procedures or hospitalisations, especially as a child
Witnessing domestic violence or family conflict
Experiencing discrimination or prejudice
Being in emotionally abusive relationships
Sudden losses or unexpected life changes
Accidents or injuries that left you feeling helpless

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can develop after a traumatic experience, such as a car collision, earthquake, or sexual assault. Symptoms of PTSD may include dreams or unwanted images of the trauma, avoidance of reminders, and mood difficulties. Complex PTSD (CPTSD) is more likely to develop after repeated experiences of trauma or if trauma happened early in life. Complex trauma can be defined as long-term, interpersonal abuse, occurring on multiple occasions and often beginning early in life. CPTSD symptoms can include feelings of fear, loss, abandonment, and isolation, which can significantly impact daily functioning.

The common thread isn’t the severity of the event itself, but rather how it affected your nervous system and sense of safety in the world. Trauma can have lasting adverse effects, including persistent trauma memories and difficult memories that may intrude into daily life and affect psychological, physical, and social well-being.

Take a moment to honestly consider these statements. There’s no judgment here – this is simply information to help you understand your own experience better.

Check any that regularly apply to you:

Section 1

☐ My body reacts intensely before my mind catches up – I might suddenly feel panicked, frozen, or have my heart racing in situations that don’t seem to warrant such strong physical responses.

☐ I avoid certain places, people, or situations – There are things I stay away from not because they’re actually dangerous, but because they bring up uncomfortable feelings or memories.

☐ Sleep is often disrupted – I struggle with falling asleep, staying asleep, or I have vivid dreams or nightmares that leave me feeling unsettled.

☐ I feel constantly alert or on edge – Even during safe moments, part of me feels like I’m scanning for potential threats or problems.

☐ Unexpected sounds, touches, or movements startle me more than others – I jump easily or have strong reactions to things that don’t seem to bother other people.

Section 2

☐ I have trouble staying present in my body – Sometimes I feel disconnected from myself, like I’m watching my life from the outside or floating above situations.

☐ Certain triggers bring up intense emotions – Specific sounds, smells, situations, or even types of people can suddenly flood me with feelings that seem disproportionate to what’s actually happening.

☐ I struggle to trust my own perceptions – I often second-guess myself or feel confused about whether my reactions are “normal” or “appropriate.”

☐ Relationships feel like an impossible puzzle – I desperately want close connections but simultaneously fear them, often alternating between clinging to people and pushing them away without understanding why.

Section 3

☐ My relationships follow confusing patterns – I might seek out partners who are emotionally unavailable, unpredictable, or who recreate familiar dynamics from my past, even when these relationships cause pain.

☐ I struggle with emotional boundaries – I either have no boundaries (absorbing others’ emotions as my own) or walls so high that genuine intimacy feels impossible.

☐ I experience unexplained physical symptoms – Chronic headaches, digestive issues, muscle tension, or other bodily complaints that don’t have clear medical causes but seem connected to stress or emotional states.

☐ I have difficulty regulating my emotions – My feelings can shift quickly and intensely, and I sometimes feel like I’m at the mercy of my emotional responses.

☐ Memory gaps or fuzzy recollections of certain periods – There are chunks of time, particularly from childhood or during stressful periods, that feel unclear or difficult to remember.

Section 4

☐ I feel emotionally “younger” in certain situations – When triggered or overwhelmed, I might feel or react like a much younger version of myself, losing access to my adult coping skills.

☐ I have an internal sense of emptiness or numbness – Sometimes I feel hollow inside, as if I’m going through the motions of life without truly feeling present or alive.

☐ I’m hypervigilant about others’ emotions and reactions – I constantly scan people’s faces, tone of voice, and body language for signs of anger, disappointment, or rejection, often feeling responsible for managing their emotional states.

☐ I feel fundamentally different from other people – There’s a persistent sense that I don’t fit in or that I’m somehow broken or flawed in ways others aren’t.

Introduction to Trauma and Mental Health

Trauma and mental health are deeply connected, with traumatic events often leaving lasting marks on an individual’s emotional well-being. Experiences such as domestic abuse, sexual abuse, or other emotionally harmful situations can have a profound psychological impact, sometimes leading to conditions like post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The symptoms of PTSD—such as intrusive memories, heightened anxiety, and emotional numbness—can disrupt daily life and make it difficult to feel calm or safe.

Fortunately, trauma therapy offers a path toward healing. Approaches like cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are widely recognised for their effectiveness in treating PTSD symptoms and supporting emotional recovery. A well-structured treatment plan can help individuals develop coping skills, regulate emotions, and address the many forms trauma can take. Whether the trauma stems from a single event or a series of distressing experiences, therapy provides a supportive environment to process difficult emotions and begin the journey toward improved mental health. By seeking professional help, individuals can learn to manage symptoms, rebuild their sense of self, and restore emotional well-being.

Understanding Your Results

0-5 Checked: Lower Trauma Indicators

Your responses suggest that while you may experience some anxiety or stress, it’s less likely to be rooted in unprocessed complex trauma. However, if any of the statements you did check feel particularly significant or disruptive to your life, it’s still worth exploring with a professional. Sometimes trauma can be very specific to certain triggers or situations, and even “lower” indicators can signal important patterns worth understanding.

Consider: General anxiety counselling or stress management techniques might be most helpful for you. If your anxiety is affecting your daily life, quality relationships, or work performance, counselling can provide valuable coping strategies and insights. Psychological therapy or psychotherapy can also address specific issues such as health anxiety, which involves persistent worry about health issues and can impact your overall well-being.

6-11 Checked: Moderate Complex Trauma Indicators

Your responses suggest you may be experiencing some complex trauma-related symptoms that could significantly benefit from professional support. These patterns might be affecting your daily life and relationships in ways you hadn’t fully connected to past experiences. Many people are surprised to learn that symptoms they’ve attributed to anxiety, sensitivity, or personality traits are actually their nervous system’s way of protecting them based on previous relational experiences.

Complex trauma often involves disrupted attachment patterns, meaning the very relationships that should have provided safety and emotional regulation may have been sources of confusion, inconsistency, or harm. This can create what researchers call “disorganised attachment” - a pattern where you simultaneously crave and fear close relationships. Trauma can have lasting adverse effects on an individual's functioning, impacting emotional, psychological, and social aspects of daily life.

Consider: Working with a trauma therapist who specialises in complex trauma and attachment issues. Approaches like EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), or attachment-focused therapy can be particularly effective for processing these layered experiences and helping your nervous system learn new patterns of connection.

12+ Checked: Higher Complex Trauma Indicators

Your responses suggest you may be experiencing significant complex trauma-related symptoms that are likely impacting multiple areas of your life. Please know that these responses aren’t signs of weakness or dysfunction – they’re evidence of your nervous system working overtime to keep you safe based on past relational experiences, particularly during your formative years.

Complex trauma often stems from chronic interpersonal experiences rather than single incidents. Research shows that when attachment figures (usually caregivers) are sources of both comfort and fear, it creates what’s called “disorganised attachment” - a pattern where relationships feel simultaneously essential and terrifying. This can lead to alternating between emotional extremes of desperately seeking connection and then pushing others away when they get too close.

Many of the patterns you’ve identified likely make perfect sense when viewed through the lens of a nervous system that learned early on that relationships could be unpredictable or unsafe. Complex trauma affects not just your emotional regulation, but also your ability to maintain stable relationships and your sense of self. Trauma can result in lasting adverse effects on an individual's functioning, including psychological, physical, and social well-being.

Consider: We strongly recommend connecting with a qualified trauma therapist who has specific training in complex trauma and attachment issues as soon as possible. Look for practitioners trained in approaches like EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, Internal Family Systems, or attachment-focused therapy. Your symptoms are likely affecting multiple areas of your life, and you deserve support in processing these experiences and learning that relationships can be safe and nourishing.

Recommendations for Therapy

Psychological therapy and psychotherapy, including evidence-based approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), are effective for trauma-related difficulties, anxiety disorders, and stress. CBT is widely considered an effective model of counselling for trauma and anxiety, while EMDR is recommended by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These therapies can be tailored to address your specific needs and help reduce symptoms.

Seeking support through psychological therapy or psychotherapy can help you process trauma, develop coping mechanisms, and support your journey in moving forward after difficult experiences.

When Trauma Doesn't Look Traumatic

Complex trauma often doesn’t fit our typical understanding of what trauma “looks like.” Rather than dramatic single events, it usually develops from chronic experiences within primary relationships during childhood when our nervous systems are still forming. While post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often results from a single traumatic event, complex PTSD develops from prolonged or multiple interpersonal traumas, often beginning early in life. Complex PTSD can have a significant impact on an individual's functioning, affecting their ability to think, feel, behave, and physically function in daily life. This might include emotional inconsistency (caregivers who are loving one moment, frightening the next), emotional neglect (physical needs met while emotional needs are ignored), parentification (managing a parent’s emotions as a child), witnessing chronic conflict, medical trauma without emotional support, or living with caregivers struggling with mental health issues.

Research shows this creates “disorganised attachment” - where the people who should provide safety become sources of confusion or fear. Children need attachment to survive, but their attachment figures are also sources of distress - an impossible situation that shapes how relationships feel in adulthood. The lasting adverse effects of complex trauma can impact emotional and social well-being for years to come, and additional support may be needed to address these challenges.

Managing Psychological Symptoms

Managing psychological symptoms is a vital part of the trauma recovery process. Many people find themselves struggling with anxiety disorders, generalised anxiety, or overwhelming emotional responses after experiencing trauma. Trauma counselling, particularly through cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), can help individuals identify and challenge negative thoughts and unhelpful patterns that keep them feeling stuck.

Working with a CBT therapist, clients learn practical coping strategies to manage anxiety and regulate emotions more effectively. Techniques such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) are also valuable for processing traumatic memories, helping to reduce their emotional intensity and the distress they cause. By addressing psychological symptoms head-on, individuals can gain greater control over their emotional responses, break free from cycles of anxiety, and develop healthier ways to cope with stress. This empowers them to move forward with greater resilience and confidence.

How Complex Trauma Affects Adult Relationships

Complex trauma creates a challenging dynamic where you simultaneously crave intimate relationships while being intensely afraid of them. This isn’t simply “fear of commitment” - it’s a nervous system response based on early learning that close relationships can be dangerous. Complex trauma can also lead to low self esteem and adverse effects on an individual's functioning in relationships, making it difficult to form and maintain healthy connections.

Common patterns include:

Starting relationships with intense connection, then withdrawing when things feel “too good”
Feeling suffocated by love while simultaneously fearing abandonment
Testing relationships through conflict to see if the person will stay
Feeling most attracted to emotionally unavailable people who recreate familiar patterns
Intense emotional reactions that feel disproportionate to the situation
Difficulty trusting that someone could love you without wanting to change you
Hypervigilance about others’ emotions and potential rejection
Confusion about what healthy boundaries look like

Therapy can support you in moving forward, helping you address these patterns and build healthier, more fulfilling relationships.

Social Anxiety and Trauma

Social anxiety often has roots in past traumatic experiences, especially those involving emotional abuse, neglect, or other forms of relational harm. Trauma counselling provides a safe space for individuals to explore these connections and begin to rebuild trust in themselves and others. Through person-centred therapy, which honours each person’s unique lived experience, clients are supported in working through difficult emotions and gaining a better understanding of how trauma has shaped their self-esteem and social interactions.

By addressing the underlying causes of social anxiety, therapy helps individuals develop self-confidence and learn new ways to engage with others. This process not only reduces feelings of anxiety in social situations but also fosters a sense of belonging and emotional safety. With the right support, it’s possible to move beyond the fear and isolation that often accompany social anxiety, and to experience more fulfilling and authentic connections.

The Role of EMDR in Complex Trauma Recovery

As a trauma therapist trained in EMDR, I’ve witnessed how this evidence-based approach can transform lives. EMDR helps your brain process difficult memories, trauma memories, and distressing events in a way that reduces their emotional charge and physical impact. For complex trauma, EMDR can address not just specific memories but also the underlying attachment patterns that create relationship difficulties.

EMDR is recommended by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and involves processing traumatic memories through bilateral stimulation. Many clients find that after EMDR therapy, situations that once triggered intense responses become manageable. The memories don’t disappear, but they lose their power to hijack your nervous system and daily life.

Benefits of Trauma Counselling

The benefits of trauma counselling extend far beyond symptom relief. By working with a professional, individuals gain a deeper understanding of how traumatic experiences have influenced their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours in daily life. A personalised treatment plan—whether it includes schema therapy, commitment therapy, or cognitive behavioural approaches—can help address specific challenges and promote lasting healing.

Trauma counselling supports individuals in managing anxiety, reducing symptoms of depression, and improving overall emotional well-being. Through learning to regulate emotions and develop effective coping strategies, clients are empowered to move forward from the past and reclaim their lives. With compassionate support and evidence-based treatment, healing becomes not just possible, but sustainable.

Finding Trauma Therapy in Glasgow

If these indicators resonate with you, you don’t have to navigate this journey alone. When looking for trauma therapy in Glasgow, it’s important to find someone who understands complex trauma and attachment issues. Effective therapy requires specific expertise in approaches like EMDR, Internal Family Systems, or attachment-focused therapy.

Many people seeking trauma counselling in Glasgow encounter long waits for assessments and treatment within NHS and public mental health services. While NHS trauma counselling services are free at the point of access, these long waits can delay support. In contrast, immediate access to trauma-informed therapies is often available through private therapists and charities, which may accept self-referrals and typically begin with an initial consultation to assess your needs. Private counselling in Glasgow offers tailored support without long waiting lists, and many independent psychologists and counsellors provide trauma therapies, with session costs often starting around £60-£70 per hour. Therapists in Glasgow frequently offer a free consultation to discuss your situation and therapeutic needs.

Numerous charities in Glasgow also provide trauma support, including Rape Crisis Glasgow, Archway Glasgow, and the Moira Anderson Foundation. For urgent mental health support, the free and confidential Breathing Space phoneline is available from 6 PM to 2 AM on weekdays and throughout the weekend, and NHS 24 can be reached at 111 outside of GP hours.

The Glasgow Psychological Trauma Service (GPTS) specializes in multidisciplinary psychological interventions and treatment for Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD) following complex trauma experiences. GPTS accepts referrals from GPs, Mental Health Teams, Social Workers, Community Addiction Teams, and Third Sector Organisations, but does not accept self-referrals. They prioritize referrals based on current symptoms and clinical needs, and offer treatment options that can be delivered digitally or face-to-face.

At Brain Botanics, I specialise in trauma therapy for adults who are ready to understand and heal from past experiences that continue to affect their relationships and daily life. My approach combines EMDR with other trauma-informed therapies, always moving at a pace that feels safe for you.

What to Expect in a Session

When you attend a trauma counselling session, you can expect a welcoming, non-judgmental environment where your feelings and experiences are respected. The first session typically involves discussing your lived experience, identifying areas of concern, and collaborating with your therapist to create a treatment plan tailored to your needs. This process is designed to help you feel safe, understood, and supported as you begin your healing journey.

Whether you choose in person therapy or online sessions, your therapist will work with you to build trust and ensure you feel comfortable throughout the process. Each session is an opportunity to explore your emotions, develop new coping skills, and take meaningful steps toward recovery. By reaching out for support, you’re making a powerful commitment to your own healing and emotional well-being.

Your Next Steps

Understanding whether trauma might be affecting your life is an important first step. Here's what you can do now:

Immediate Steps:

Practice self-compassion – your responses make perfect sense given your experiences
Begin noticing your triggers without trying to change them yet
Consider reaching out to a trauma-informed counsellor

Professional Support: If you're ready to explore how trauma therapy might help you reclaim your sense of safety and wellbeing, I offer free initial consultations where we can discuss your specific experiences and how approaches like EMDR might support your healing.

Remember: seeking help for trauma isn't a sign of weakness – it's an act of courage. You deserve to live a life where past experiences inform your wisdom rather than limit your possibilities.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

If this assessment has helped you recognise patterns you'd like to change, you don't have to figure this out on your own. Professional trauma therapy can provide the support and tools needed to process these experiences safely and reclaim your sense of empowerment.

As a Glasgow-based trauma therapist with extensive training in EMDR and other evidence-based approaches, I understand how isolating and confusing these experiences can feel. My practice is specifically designed to help adults process trauma in a way that honours both your strength and your need for healing.

Book a free consultation call to discuss how trauma therapy might support your journey toward greater peace and authenticity. Together, we can explore whether approaches like EMDR might help you move from surviving to truly thriving.

Rebecca is a Glasgow-based trauma therapist specialising in EMDR and trauma-informed care for adults. With 12 years of experience providing trauma counselling in Glasgow, she helps clients process difficult experiences while building resilience and reclaiming their sense of safety in the world.

Book a free call