What Is A Trauma Response?
When something overwhelming or traumatic happens, your body and nervous system step in to protect you. This is not something you consciously choose—it’s an automatic survival response designed to keep you safe.
But what happens when that protective response doesn’t turn off? What if, long after the trauma has passed, your body still reacts as if the danger is happening all over again?
This is where the term “trauma response” comes in. It’s often used in two different ways:
An Immediate Trauma Response (During the Event) – When your body reacts in real-time to a stressful or dangerous situation, activating a survival instinct like Fight, Flight, Freeze, or Fawn.
A Repeated Trauma Response (When the Past Gets Triggered in the Present) – When an old wound hasn’t fully healed, and something in the present moment stirs up an unconscious reaction, making you feel like you’re back in the past.
Understanding both of these is an important part of healing. If you’ve ever felt stuck in cycles of anxiety, avoidance, or emotional shutdown, know that you are not broken—your body has simply learned and relied on certain patterns to try to keep you safe and manage specific aspects of your life. And those patterns can be gently shifted over time.
Let’s explore these trauma responses with compassion and care.
The Two Ways Trauma Responses Show Up
1. The Immediate Trauma Response (In the Moment of Trauma)
When something overwhelming happens, your nervous system acts instantly to protect you. It assesses the level of danger and chooses the best survival strategy:
• Do you fight back?
• Do you run away?
• Do you freeze in place?
• Do you please and appease to stay safe?
These reactions happen automatically—your body takes over before your thinking brain even has time to process.
Example: Imagine someone suddenly slams on the brakes in front of you while driving. Your heart races, your hands grip the wheel, and you instinctively swerve or slam the brakes. That’s your nervous system protecting you in real-time.
What is a normal response to trauma? A normal response to trauma is any reaction your nervous system deems necessary for survival. Some people feel numb, others panic, some become hyper-aware, and others withdraw. There is no “right” or “wrong” way to respond—only what your nervous system instinctively knows will keep you safe.
People are also predisposed to trauma responses due to their epigenetics. There is a strong unconscious biological force that shapes each individual that influences them in their life as well as in intense overwhelming traumatic situations.
If a traumatic event is fully processed and resolved, your nervous system naturally returns to a state of balance. But if the experience is too overwhelming or goes unresolved, your body will stay stuck in survival mode, even long after the danger has passed.
2. The Repeated Trauma Response (When the Past Gets Triggered in the Present)
Sometimes, our bodies hold on to trauma, and our nervous system continues reacting to certain triggers as if the original event is happening again. This can lead to intense emotions, body tension, or even shutting down—often without understanding why.
Example: Let’s say as a child, your parents would oscillate between being present with you and checked out or shut down. Sometimes you felt connected and your needs were met and other times not all. Now, as an adult, if a friend doesn’t text you back right away, you might feel deep panic or abandonment, even though logically you know they’re probably just busy. Your reaction isn’t really about the text—it’s an old wound being stirred up.
What is a trauma response in a relationship? In relationships, trauma responses can show up as conflict avoidance, difficulty setting boundaries, emotional withdrawal, an intense fear of rejection, and many other possibilities. These reactions are often rooted in past experiences, making it hard to feel safe in connection with others.
This kind of trauma response can feel confusing and frustrating, but it makes sense when we understand that the nervous system is simply trying to protect us from reliving past pain. The good news? These patterns can be healed with awareness and gentle nervous system support.
The Four Most Common Trauma Responses
Whether happening in the moment or as a repeated pattern, trauma responses usually fall into four main categories. There is also a list of signs depicting what is a normal response to trauma per category.
1. Fight – Defending Yourself Against a Threat
Your body prepares to stand its ground and fight back. This response often shows up as anger, control, or defensiveness.
Signs of a Fight Response:
Feeling angry or aggressive when threatened
Becoming controlling or needing to be “in charge”
Clenching your jaw, balling your fists, feeling tense, body heat rises, or feeling shaky with anger or ‘hearing’ your heart pound
A Healing Approach: If you notice this response, try grounding exercises like pressing your feet into the floor or taking slow, deep breaths to remind your body that you are safe.
2. Flight – Trying to Escape the Threat
This response is about getting away—physically, emotionally, or mentally.
Signs of a Flight Response:
Feeling restless or anxious, like you need to “do something”
Overworking, staying constantly busy, or avoiding stillness
Wanting to run from difficult conversations or emotions
A Healing Approach: Movement-based practices like walking, stretching, or shaking out tension can help the body release stored energy and find a sense of calm.
3. Freeze – Becoming Stuck or Shut Down
When fighting or fleeing doesn’t feel like an option, the body shuts down instead.
What is a freeze trauma response? A freeze trauma response happens when the nervous system goes into shutdown mode as a way to protect itself. It can feel like being stuck, unable to move, think clearly, or take action. The freeze response occurs when there is fight or flight already happening - and the person is unable to flee or fight back. Freeze is enacted in order to survive.
Note: there are different degrees and variations of freeze.
Signs of a Freeze Response:
Feeling numb, disconnected, or spaced out
Procrastinating or struggling to make decisions
Experiencing chronic fatigue or low energy
A Healing Approach: If you tend to freeze, small, gentle movements like rubbing your hands together or humming can help signal to your nervous system that it’s safe to re-engage. If you’d like deeper guidance, my somatic healing sessions can help you release stored trauma and reconnect with your body.
4. Fawn – Trying to Please to Stay Safe
What is a fawn trauma response? A fawn response happens when someone prioritizes pleasing others over their own needs to avoid conflict, rejection, or harm. It’s a survival strategy that often develops in childhood.
Signs of a Fawn Response:
Over-apologizing or feeling responsible for others’ emotions
Struggling to set boundaries or say “no”
Feeling anxious when someone is upset with you
A Healing Approach: Practicing small, safe boundaries (like pausing before saying yes to something) can help rebuild a sense of self-trust.
What Is a Trauma-Informed Response?
A trauma-informed response means approaching situations with an awareness of how trauma affects people and may be playing out in the moment. This is opposite to not understanding or judging one’s behavior. A trauma-informed response involves:
Recognizing that behaviors may be trauma responses, not personal attacks
Creating a safe, non-judgmental environment
Offering compassion, choices and support rather than blame
This approach is especially important in therapy, healthcare, relationships, and workplaces where people may be carrying unseen wounds.
Moving Towards Healing
If you recognize yourself in these patterns, I want you to know: you are not broken, and you are not alone. Trauma responses are not flaws—they are signs of a brilliant survival system doing its best to protect you. And with the right tools and support, you can gently guide your nervous system toward more ease, connection, and safety.
If you’re looking for personalized support in healing trauma responses, work with me here. Together, we can create a path toward deeper healing and nervous system regulation.
is trauma holding you back?
Perhaps you experienced a specific event that left you feeling different, disconnected, or stuck. Or maybe you carry a sense of unease in your body, struggling with anxiety or a feeling that something isn’t quite right.
As a somatic experiencing practitioner I specialize in helping people process and release stored trauma through gentle yet effective methods.
Download my FREE guide “Get Unstuck! The Truth About Body Trauma and How to Break Free’ and learn how to create the future you deserve.
Brianna Anderson, SEP
I’m here to help you heal so you can begin to live the life of your dreams
My private practice specializes in helping people who have endured trauma, resolve the symptoms out of their body, mind & spirit so they can feel comfortable in their skin, find inner peace and live the desires of their heart.
I am based out of South Orange County, Ca and offer online therapy sessions. Whether you are just starting your healing journey or ready to try something new, I am here to help.