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Trauma’s Silent Barriers: How Unresolved Issues Impair the 5 Pillars of Wellbeing

In 2008, the New Economics Forum reviewed over 400 studies from the Foresight report on Mental Capital and Wellbeing to identify five key actions for improving mental health and happiness: connect, be active, take notice, keep learning, and give.

These "5 ways to wellbeing" provide a powerful guide to thriving...but might be hard to achieve if you are dealing with any unresolved trauma.

Why?

It is my clinical experience that however successful you might be, unresolved trauma can block these pathways to wellbeing.

Trauma creates unhelpful beliefs like “I’m not good enough” or “I don’t belong,” making it hard to feel capable or connected. If you feel this might be something you are dealing with, trauma therapy can release these barriers, helping to heal and rediscover a fuller, more empowered life.

Let’s look at the 5 ways to wellbeing that were identified in these 400 studies and see how trauma can block these…

1. Connect: Trauma can make relationships feel unsafe or untrustworthy. Therapy helps rebuild confidence and trust so we can reconnect with others.

2. Be Active: Trauma often leaves us feeling drained or stuck. Healing can restore energy and make movement feel enjoyable again.

3. Take Notice: When we’re stuck in worry or past pain, it’s hard to appreciate the present. Therapy helps free us from these patterns, creating space for life’s small joys.

4. Keep Learning: Trauma can make us fear failure or doubt ourselves. Therapy helps us rediscover curiosity and the courage to try new things.

5. Give: Trauma can leave us feeling disconnected from others. Healing helps us feel part of something bigger, making it easier to give and share.

What is trauma therapy and how can it help?

Trauma therapy can feel like finally letting go of a heavy weight you’ve carried for years. Many people describe feeling “stuck” in extreme ways of thinking, like “I’m not good enough” or “The world is against me.” These thoughts often feel impossible to change because they’re tied to deep emotional pain.

With trauma therapy, this begins to shift. People often say:

• “I felt lighter, like a weight had been lifted.” Therapies like EMDR help safely release the emotions tied to painful memories, so they no longer control you.

  
  

• “I realised I’d been holding onto beliefs that weren’t true.” With approaches like RTT, you uncover where these beliefs—like “I’ll never be successful” or “I don’t deserve love”—came from, and replace them with ones that truly empower you.

  
  

• “I feel whole again, like I’ve found myself.” Using techniques like IFS, you heal the parts of yourself that were stuck in the past, restoring a sense of calm and self-connection.

  
  

The result? Many people describe feeling freer, calmer, and more balanced. They say they can finally see themselves clearly—capable, worthy, and able to connect with others and the world. These therapies don’t just ease old pain; they open the door to a lighter, more hopeful future.

If you are curious about your past and how it might be getting in the way of your future, reach out for a free consultation.