QC: Trauma vs Grief: Finding Clarity

Licensed therapist Shawn Whitney explains how our bodies experience trauma and grief in similar ways, making it difficult to differentiate between them when navigating chronic illness. The most important aspect of healing is acknowledging the true significance of our experiences rather than minimizing them, as treatment approaches for both trauma and grief focus on validating impact rather than categorizing emotions.

• Our bodies experience trauma and grief similarly with little physiological differentiation
• Trauma impacts us emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, relationally and sexually
• Effective trauma treatment is also effective grief and loss treatment
• Cultural messages often minimize our experiences with phrases like "you'll get over it"
• Healing begins by acknowledging the significance and true impact of our experiences
• Language and identification have value, but impact matters more than categorization

Send your questions to contact@endobattery.com or visit endobattery.com/contact to connect with more experts.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Quick Connect
• 0:39 Sean Whitney: Trauma-Informed Care Expert
• 1:12 Differentiating Trauma from Grief
• 3:07 Healing Through Acknowledgment
• 4:57 Episode Closing and Resources

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Life moves fast and so should the answers to your biggest questions. Welcome to EndoBattery's Quick Connect, your direct line to expert insights. Short, powerful and right to the point. You send in the questions, I bring in the experts and in just five minutes you get the knowledge you need. No long episodes, no extra time needed, and just remember expert opinions shared here are for general information and not for personalized medical advice. Always consult your provider for your case-specific guidance. Got a question? Send it in and let's quickly get you the answers. I'm your host, alana, and it's time to connect Today.

Speaker 1: 0:39

I'm honored to welcome Sean Whitney, a licensed therapist and founder of Restoration Family Therapy. To welcome Sean Whitney, a licensed therapist and founder of Restoration Family Therapy. Sean specializes in trauma-informed care and supports individuals and families navigating the complex emotional toll of chronic illness. His compassionate approach helps clients process past wounds, build resilience and find connection in the midst of physical and emotional pain. Whether it's coping with medical trauma, managing the stress of a long-term diagnosis or healing relational strain caused by illness, sean provides a safe space for restoration and growth.

Speaker 1: 1:12

Let's get into this For a lot of us with endometriosis, adenomyosis, PCOS, really generally women's health which is although we know endometriosis is not a reproductive issue, women's health in general, which it largely affects cis women we really struggle with. Okay, we've had trauma, the care is not there that we need. So we are not only dealing with the grief of what we wish we would have had or this continues to hit us, but then we're dealing with the trauma of what we wish we would have had or this continues to hit us, but then we're dealing with the trauma of that. How do we differentiate between trauma and grief?

Speaker 2: 1:52

It's a lovely question, and it's one that I have a lot of conversation with my staff at CSU who run our trauma center. So we do a variety of things, including trauma assessments and even trauma treatment, and one of the things that we continue to come back to is how do we differentiate what's actually going on for us in our lives? Because trauma is one of those things that impacts the entire person yeah, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, relationally, sexually, you name it right.

Speaker 2: 2:26

It impacts us on all levels, and grief can as well, which makes that differentiation even much more difficult for us to make right, and so I often will say it's something that we need to pay attention to and maybe in time we'll get some clarity about what it actually is for us. But the truth of the matter is our body experiences trauma and grief very similarly. There's not much differentiation that our mind, or that our body, or even our soul, for that matter, can make between what is grief and loss and what is trauma. Right, because they present very similarly.

Speaker 1: 3:08

When you're addressing the two, do you dissect that or do you treat it and address it unilaterally?

Speaker 2: 3:19

Good question. I think it's more the latter than the former, although I will say that there is value in language. There is value in trying to identify and dissect, as you're talking about, what is this thing that I'm dealing with in my life? And yet, effective trauma treatment is also effective grief and loss treatment. It's acknowledging what is as significant, and that's a really important piece, right, because culture, maybe even my partner, my parents, you name it, somebody significant in my life or very strong themes and messages that I've been bombarded with in my life, tell me otherwise, oh, you'll get over it, or it's just a bad day. Tomorrow's coming and so much of what we hear minimizes our experience. And so so much of what treatment is about is acknowledging its true significance and its true impact on us. And so, as we're dissecting or differentiating grief and trauma, while that's an important exercise, the more important one in my mind is what is the impact of this on you?

Speaker 1: 4:42

Right, and what is the continual impact?

Speaker 2: 4:45

Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 4:47

If this episode struck a chord with you or helped you feel seen in any way, I encourage you to check out episode 62, where Sean shares even more insight and support. His approach to healing through trauma and chronic illness is something you won't want to miss. That's a wrap for this Quick Connect. I hope today's insights helped you move forward with more clarity and confidence. Do you have more questions? Keep them coming, send them in and I'll bring you the expert answers. You can send them in by using the link in the top of the description of this podcast episode or by emailing contact at endobatterycom or visiting the endobatterycom contact page. Until next time, keep feeling empowered through knowledge.