The freeze trauma response can feel like being shut down, numb, or unable to act. It’s the body’s way of protecting itself when fight or flight aren’t possible. The nervous system slows everything down to keep us safe. But when freeze becomes the default response, it can limit how we live, work, and connect with others.

We inherit much more than eye colour or temperament from our families. We also carry emotional patterns, belief systems, attachment styles, and nervous system responses that were shaped by generations before us. The most empowering truth I’ve come to know is that we don’t have to stay stuck in these inherited patterns. With the right support, it’s possible to identify what you’ve been carrying for others, and gently begin to release it.

Sometimes talking just isn’t enough. You might understand why you react the way you do. You may have read all the right books and even had helpful conversations with therapists, friends or support groups. But still, something in your body keeps pulling you back into the same patterns. The same fears. The same emotional pain.

In trauma recovery, we work with the nervous system in layers. Each time we create more capacity for safety, another layer of held experience may surface. This is natural, and often necessary. You might feel frustrated by this process: I thought I’d already dealt with this. But the truth is, you’re meeting it now with more support, more regulation, and more choice than you had before.

Intergenerational trauma refers to the way unresolved trauma can be passed from one generation to the next. This can happen through behaviour, emotional patterns, nervous system imprinting, or the stories we do or don’t tell.