Trauma places the nervous system into chronic survival mode, which changes how sensory information is processed, filtered, and interpreted.

Instead of:
Is this safe?
The brain constantly scans:
Is this dangerous?

This shifts perception across all sensory systems.

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👁 Vision — Hypervigilance & Tunnel Vision

Common trauma effects:

• Light sensitivity
• Visual overload
• Tunnel vision
• Blurred vision
• Eye strain
• Visual fatigue
• Difficulty focusing

Why:
The brain prioritises threat detection → scanning for danger → narrowing visual field.

This explains why trauma survivors often feel visually overstimulated or exhausted.

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👂 Hearing — Sound Sensitivity & Startle Response

Common effects:

• Sensitivity to noise
• Easily startled
• Distress from sudden sounds
• Difficulty filtering background noise
• Auditory overload

Why:
The amygdala heightens auditory alertness → preparing for threat.

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✋ Touch — Pain Sensitivity & Numbness

Trauma can cause:

• Hypersensitivity to touch
• Pain amplification
• Discomfort with closeness
• Emotional numbing
• Dissociation from bodily sensations

Why:
Survival mode alters pain processing pathways.

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👃 Smell — Memory Triggers & Flashbacks

Smell is deeply wired to memory.

Trauma effects:

• Strong emotional reactions to certain smells
• Flashbacks triggered by scent
• Sudden nausea or panic

Why:
Olfactory pathways connect directly to emotional memory centres.

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👅 Taste — Appetite Changes & Digestive Sensitivity

Common changes:

• Loss of appetite
• Emotional eating
• Food aversion
• Nausea
• Sensory food sensitivity

Why:
Stress hormones suppress digestion and appetite regulation.

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🧍 Proprioception — Body Awareness Disruption

Trauma often disconnects people from body awareness:

• Feeling detached from body
• Clumsiness
• Poor spatial awareness
• Dissociation
• Numbness

Why:
Freeze and dissociation responses dampen sensory input to survive overwhelming threat.

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🧠 Interoception — Internal Body Signals

Trauma disrupts the ability to sense internal cues:

• Hunger
• Thirst
• Fatigue
• Pain
• Emotional states

This leads to:

• Burnout
• Exhaustion
• Emotional confusion
• Chronic illness patterns

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🔄 Sensory Processing Spectrum in Trauma

Trauma often creates sensory extremes:

Hyper-sensitivity:

• Easily overwhelmed
• Sensory overload
• Anxiety from stimulation

Hypo-sensitivity:

• Numbness
• Disconnection
• Emotional blunting

Many people move between both.

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🧠 Neuroscience of Sensory Changes in Trauma

Trauma causes:

• Amygdala hyperactivation
• Prefrontal cortex suppression
• Thalamic filtering disruption
• Autonomic nervous system dysregulation

This alters how sensory input is:

• Filtered
• Interpreted
• Stored
• Remembered

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🌱 Healing Sensory Dysregulation

When trauma is processed and nervous system regulation improves:

• Sensory overload decreases
• Sound & light sensitivity reduces
• Body awareness returns
• Touch becomes safer
• Appetite normalises
• Sleep improves

Safety restores sensory balance.

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❤️ Trauma-Informed Reframe

Your sensory sensitivity is not weakness.
It is biological survival intelligence.

Your nervous system adapted to protect you.

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✨ Bottom Line

Trauma doesn’t just change memory —
it reshapes perception.

But perception can heal.

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