Anxiety or Trauma?
A Christian Perspective on What’s Really Going On
“I’m constantly on edge, but I don’t know why.”
“I overthink everything and can’t shut my brain off.”
“I know it happened years ago, but I still react like it’s happening today.”
If any of those sound like something you’ve whispered under your breath or said through tears, you're not alone. As a Christian therapist, I hear versions of this every week. Many of the women I work with are trying to figure out if what they're experiencing is anxiety, trauma, or some tangled combination of both. And honestly? That confusion makes sense.
Anxiety and trauma symptoms often overlap. Both can show up in your body and relationships in ways that leave you exhausted, ashamed, and stuck. But understanding the difference between them is more than a diagnostic exercise — it’s a deeply healing step toward clarity, compassion, and freedom. In this post, we’ll explore how anxiety and trauma differ, how they overlap, how your nervous system plays a role, and what Scripture and therapy have to say about finding your way through.
Understanding Anxiety: More Than Just Feeling Worried
Anxiety is one of the most common mental health struggles — and also one of the most misunderstood. It’s not just being a “worrier” or “too sensitive.” Clinically, anxiety is a persistent sense of fear or dread that interferes with daily functioning. Often, it revolves around what might happen in the future — even if that future fear feels vague or irrational.
Common Signs of Anxiety:
Racing thoughts or constant mental looping
Trouble falling or staying asleep
Muscle tension, headaches, or jaw clenching
Difficulty focusing or making decisions
Avoiding certain situations or people
Feeling irritable, restless, or overly keyed up
You might know, logically, that nothing is “wrong” — but your body doesn’t get the memo. It feels like your mind is stuck in overdrive, your heart’s in your throat, and your spirit is worn thin.
A Biblical Look at Anxiety
Anxiety isn’t new — God’s Word speaks to it repeatedly. Not to shame us, but to draw us close.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. — Philippians 4:6 (NIV)
This verse isn’t a quick fix or a silencing of your feelings. It’s an invitation. God welcomes your anxious thoughts. You’re not a “bad Christian” for feeling overwhelmed. You’re human. And you’re seen.
Understanding Trauma: When the Past Still Has a Grip
Trauma is more than a memory. It’s what happens inside of you when something painful, overwhelming, or threatening shakes your sense of safety — and your body never fully comes down from that alarm. Trauma can come from a single event, or from repeated emotional wounds that accumulate over time.
Common Signs of Unresolved Trauma:
Flashbacks or intense reactions to reminders
Always feeling on edge or unsafe
Nightmares or disturbed sleep
Emotional numbness or detachment
An exaggerated startle response
Deep mistrust in relationships
A sense that part of you is still “stuck” in the past
You may intellectually “know” that the past is over — but your nervous system doesn’t agree. You react, shut down, or over-respond, even when the threat is no longer real. That’s not because you're broken. It’s because your body adapted to protect you.
Big “T” and Little “t” Trauma
Some trauma is obvious — like abuse, a car accident, or surviving a disaster. These are what we often think of as "big T" traumas — moments that are clearly life-threatening or deeply disturbing. But “little t” trauma is just as real, and often more insidious because it goes unrecognized or minimized. Chronic emotional neglect, repeated criticism, spiritual abuse, or growing up in a home where you had to stay small to feel safe — these experiences may not look dramatic on the outside, but they shape how you see yourself, how you relate to others, and even how you relate to God.
Little t trauma is cumulative. It builds slowly over time, often in the form of unmet emotional needs, invalidated feelings, or subtle patterns of fear and control. Maybe you had to perform for love, or become the caretaker before you were ready. Maybe your voice was silenced or your emotions dismissed. Maybe you lived in a “good Christian home” where image mattered more than connection, and no one talked about hard things. These kinds of experiences teach your nervous system to stay on alert and send the message: You’re not safe to be fully yourself.
What makes little t trauma so painful is the way it hides in plain sight. You might struggle with people-pleasing, perfectionism, chronic anxiety, or an inability to rest — and not realize those patterns are rooted in your earliest relational experiences. The wounds may be invisible, but they’re not insignificant. They shape the internal narratives that echo through your adult life: I have to earn love. I’m too much. I’m not enough. I’m only valuable if I keep it all together. These beliefs don’t just affect your mental health — they impact your faith, too, especially when your view of God has been filtered through the lens of human wounds.
Little t trauma matters. It’s valid. And it’s worthy of healing.
Scripture and the Reality of Trauma
The Bible doesn’t hide trauma. From Joseph being sold by his brothers (Genesis 37), to David’s years in hiding (1 Samuel 18–24), to Jesus bearing the cross, Scripture is filled with stories of real people navigating deep pain.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.— Psalm 34:18 (NIV)
You don’t have to minimize what you've been through. God doesn’t.
The Overlap: Why It’s Hard to Tell Them Apart
Here’s the thing — anxiety and trauma don’t always show up separately. In fact, trauma often breeds anxiety. If you’ve experienced trauma, your brain and body may live in a constant state of hyperawareness. That fear might get labeled as “just anxiety,” when really, it's your nervous system trying to keep you safe based on past pain.
Likewise, persistent anxiety can cause your body to demonstrate a trauma response. Living in a state of chronic stress can dysregulate your nervous system and erode your sense of safety.
Shared Symptoms Might Include:
Restlessness or being unable to relax
Trouble sleeping or racing thoughts
Avoiding triggers or situations
Difficulty concentrating
Feeling emotionally overwhelmed or shut down
So now that you can see the similarities and the overlaps how do you tell the difference?
A Key Reflection:
Is your fear tied to a future possibility? That’s more often anxiety.
Is your fear tied to a past experience that still holds emotional weight? That points to trauma.
Your Nervous System Knows
Understanding how your nervous system works gives us even more clarity.
In Anxiety:
Your brain detects a possible threat.
Your body launches a fight-or-flight response: quickened heart rate, shallow breathing, tight muscles.
The threat may not be real, but your body responds as if it is.
In Trauma:
Your brain is stuck in survival mode from a past event.
Your body responds automatically, even in safe settings.
You might freeze, dissociate, or feel like you’ve lost access to logical thought.
In short: anxiety is your brain anticipating danger. Trauma is your body reliving it.
This is why trauma responses feel involuntary — because they are. Your nervous system is doing what it learned to do. But healing is possible. With the right support, your brain and body can learn safety again.
A Christian Lens on Anxiety and Trauma
In Christian counseling we don’t separate science from Scripture — we bring them together. God created your nervous system. He understands the complexity of your story. God’s presence isn’t limited to peaceful moments — Christ meets us in our mess.
What I want you to know:
Struggling with anxiety doesn’t mean your faith is weak.
Trauma doesn’t define your identity or your worth.
God is not disappointed in your pain — He’s present in it.
A Biblical Side-by-Side:
When to Reach Out for Help
There’s no shame in needing support. Therapy doesn’t replace prayer — it partners with it. If you’ve tried all the quiet times, journaling, and podcasts and still feel stuck, that’s not failure. That’s a sign it’s time to go deeper.
Consider therapy if:
Your symptoms are impacting your work, relationships, or health.
You’re experiencing panic attacks, nightmares, or emotional flooding.
You feel spiritually disconnected or numb.
You know something deeper is going on, but can’t name it.
Even Paul talked openly about his weaknesses and his need for God’s sustaining grace (2 Corinthians 12:7–10). Reaching out is not a sign of weakness — it’s wisdom.
How I Support Women in Healing
As a Christian therapist trained in EMDR and Trauma-Focused CBT, I specialize in helping women move from survival mode to secure, grounded living — emotionally and spiritually.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR helps your brain reprocess painful memories so they no longer feel threatening. We don’t erase what happened — we reduce the emotional charge it carries. Clients often describe it as finally feeling “free” or “lighter.”
Trauma-Focused CBT
This approach gently examines how your past shaped your beliefs — and offers tools to reframe them through truth, not fear. We don’t shame your patterns. We get curious about them.
Christian Integration
Faith is woven into the process. We invite God into the room, ask the Holy Spirit for discernment, and use Scripture not as band-aids but as anchors. Because healing isn’t just psychological — it’s holy ground.
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
— Psalm 147:3 (NIV)
How to Start Telling the Difference: Practical Tools
If you're still unsure whether you're dealing with anxiety, trauma, or both, here are a few ways to explore that more deeply.
1. Journal Your Triggers
Write down what sets off your symptoms. Is it a memory? A dynamic? A what-if scenario? Looking for patterns can help you pinpoint the root. Be sure to notate the trigger, thoughts you experienced, feelings you noticed, where in your body you felt these emotions, and the level of distress this trigger was from 0 (none at all) to 10 (most intense). These logs can also be brought into your therapy sessions for further reflection and deeper understanding.
2. Sit in Stillness With God
Give space for the Holy Spirit to speak. Sometimes, clarity comes not in striving, but in silence.
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.”
— Psalm 139:23 (NIV)
3. Try a Grounding Exercise
Do the 5-4-3-2-1 technique (5 things you see, 4 you feel, etc.). If it helps calm you down, you may be in an anxiety spiral. If you still feel frozen or disconnected, trauma may be at play.
4. Talk to a Therapist
You don’t have to figure this out alone. Bring your trigger journal to session. A trained, Biblically grounded therapist can help you connect the dots — without judgment.
There’s Hope for You
Whether your struggles stem from trauma, anxiety, or both, I want you to know this: there is hope. You are not too broken. You are not too complicated. You are not alone.
God is in the business of restoration. And healing isn’t just about symptom relief — it’s about becoming whole again, from the inside out.
“The Spirit of the Lord… has anointed me… to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives.”
— Isaiah 61:1 (NIV)
You’re not meant to carry this alone. If this resonates with you and you’re ready to explore your next step, I’d love to walk that path with you.
Ready to Begin?
As an online Christian therapist, I help women in Ohio, Michigan, Maryland, Nevada, and Florida navigate anxiety, trauma, and faith with clinical wisdom and Biblical truth. I believe healing is possible — and you don’t have to figure it out alone.
If you’re interested in learning more or ready to begin doing your work, please reach out for your free 15 minute consultation. I look forward to learning more about you, your journey, and how we can work together to help you break free of the baggage that holds you back.
