Based on Chapter 2 of Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors by Janina Fisher
People who have lived through trauma often describe an experience like the one below:
- “I know I am safe, but I still panic”
- “There is no reason to act this way, I know there is no danger, but I still get anxious”
- “I logically know everything is ok, but my body reacts so differently”.
In Chapter 2 of Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors, trauma therapist and neuroscientist Janina Fisher helps explain why this happens, and why it makes sense.
Trauma lives in the body
Trauma isn’t only something we remember. It’s something the body and nervous system learn.
When something overwhelming or terrifying happens, especially when it occurs repeatedly or during childhood, the brain doesn’t store it like an ordinary memory. Instead, it becomes a survival memory. These memories are held deep in the nervous system and can be triggered without warning.
That’s why a smell, a tone of voice, a facial expression, or a seemingly ordinary situation can suddenly leave someone feeling:
- terrified
- frozen
- numb
- ashamed
- angry
Even when they know they are safe in the present.
Why the mind separates experience into “parts”
When trauma occurs, particularly when there is no way to escape or protect yourself, the brain has to make very quick decisions to survive. One way it does this is by separating experience into different parts.
This isn’t a choice. It’s automatic and adaptive.
- One part may carry fear, pain, or terror
- Another part may focus on functioning and getting through the day
- Another part may shut feelings down entirely
Each part has a role. Each part developed to help the person survive what was happening at the time.
Later in life, however, these same survival strategies can feel confusing, contradictory, or even distressing.
If I know better, why can’t I change?”
Chapter 2 speaks directly to a question many trauma survivors ask themselves.
Logically, they may know:
- “I’m safe now.”
- “This person isn’t dangerous.”
- “That happened years ago.”
But their body reacts as though the danger is happening right now.
Fisher explains that this isn’t a failure of insight or willpower. It’s because different parts of the brain are sending different messages. The thinking part of the brain might understand that the trauma is over, while survival parts of the brain are still doing their job, protecting at all costs.
Trauma responses are not character flaws
A powerful reframing in this chapter is the idea that behaviours shaped by trauma are often mistaken for personal failings.
People may be told—or tell themselves—that they are:
- overreacting
- too sensitive
- self‑sabotaging
- “difficult”
Fisher invites us to see these patterns differently: as protective responses that once kept the person alive.
For example:
- Avoidance may be a way of preventing overwhelm
- Emotional numbness may protect against unbearable pain
- Self‑criticism may once have helped a child stay connected to caregivers
These responses didn’t appear randomly. They developed for a reason.
Why internal conflict can feel so intense
When multiple survival systems are activated at once, inner conflict can feel exhausting and relentless.
- One part wants closeness, another wants distance
- One part wants to speak up, another wants to disappear
- One part wants help, another doesn’t trust anyone
Chapter 2 normalises this experience. Rather than seeing it as being “broken,” Fisher encourages us to understand it as multiple survival strategies operating simultaneously.
Each part believes it is doing the right thing.
A more compassionate way forward
While Chapter 2 doesn’t yet move into specific therapy techniques, it introduces an essential shift in perspective:
Healing isn’t about forcing yourself to “get over it.” It’s about understanding and listening to the parts of you that learned to survive trauma.
When people begin to see their reactions as protective rather than shameful, something important changes:
- Self‑blame softens
- Curiosity replaces judgment
- Healing feels safer
The big takeaway
If trauma has ever left you feeling divided inside, Chapter 2 offers a clear message of reassurance:
There is nothing wrong with you.
Your mind and body adapted in the best way they could.
Those adaptations can be understood—and gently healed.
Source: Fisher, J. (2017). Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors.