Emotional numbing and dissociation is often a response to trauma, grief or loss. You might feel empty, dead inside, or like you can't cry. Numbness is a common symptom of PTSD.
Learn the skills to Regulate your Emotions, join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership
Check out our free course Grounding Skills for Stress, Anxiety and PTSD: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/grounding-skills-for-anxiety-stress-and-ptsd/?utm_medium=YTDescription&utm_source=YouTube
Find a good therapist: https://therapyinanutshell.com/get-counseling/
Full Video w/ Thomas: https://youtu.be/mIypaYoKXQg
Embodiment playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-FLbFboMWs&list=PLiUrrIiqidTVO0sPOvlvYyAc0XJhsQQi8
Emotional numbness can feel like you’re cut off from life—flat, disconnected, or like you’re just going through the motions. Many people describe feeling blank, unable to cry, or watching life from the outside. This experience is more common than you think, and it’s often a nervous system response to overwhelming stress or trauma.
In this video, Emma McAdam from Therapy in a Nutshell explains why people go numb or experience dissociation, and what you can do about it. We’ll explore the science of the freeze response, how numbing protects us when emotions are too big, and why it shows up after trauma, grief, chronic stress, or burnout.
You’ll learn five practical tools to gently reconnect with yourself, including grounding with your senses, moving your body, restoring a sense of safety, and approaching numbness with curiosity instead of shame. Rather than forcing yourself to feel, these body-based practices help you work with emotional numbness and dissociation in a compassionate way.
If you’ve ever felt numb or detached after trauma, this video will help you understand what’s happening in your nervous system and how to take small, safe steps toward feeling again. Healing is possible—and you don’t have to do it alone.
00:00 Intro: Numbing and Dissociation
00:45 What is Emotional Numbness and Why Does It Happen?
01:44 Freeze: The Hidden Trauma Response
02:34 5 Reasons You Feel Numb
03:55 Numbing as a Childhood Coping Skill
04:46 5 Ways to Feel Again
05:14 1) Be Curious with Your Emotional Numbness
06:22 2) Connect with Your Body
07:28 3) Restore Your Sense of Safety
08:30 4) Ask What’s Behind the Numbness
09:41 5) Act Out the Emotion
11:07 Healing Emotional Numbness to Restore Feeling
11:58 Embodiment Practices for Trauma Healing
Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell
FREE Mental Health Resources: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/free-resources
Check out my podcast, Therapy in a Nutshell: https://tinpodcast.podbean.com/
Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health.
In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction.
And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe
If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ or 988 or your local emergency services.
Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC
Learn the skills to Regulate your Emotions, join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership
Check out our free course Grounding Skills for Stress, Anxiety and PTSD: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/grounding-skills-for-anxiety-stress-and-ptsd/?utm_medium=YTDescription&utm_source=YouTube
Find a good therapist: https://therapyinanutshell.com/get-counseling/
Full Video w/ Thomas: https://youtu.be/mIypaYoKXQg
Embodiment playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-FLbFboMWs&list=PLiUrrIiqidTVO0sPOvlvYyAc0XJhsQQi8
Emotional numbness can feel like you’re cut off from life—flat, disconnected, or like you’re just going through the motions. Many people describe feeling blank, unable to cry, or watching life from the outside. This experience is more common than you think, and it’s often a nervous system response to overwhelming stress or trauma.
In this video, Emma McAdam from Therapy in a Nutshell explains why people go numb or experience dissociation, and what you can do about it. We’ll explore the science of the freeze response, how numbing protects us when emotions are too big, and why it shows up after trauma, grief, chronic stress, or burnout.
You’ll learn five practical tools to gently reconnect with yourself, including grounding with your senses, moving your body, restoring a sense of safety, and approaching numbness with curiosity instead of shame. Rather than forcing yourself to feel, these body-based practices help you work with emotional numbness and dissociation in a compassionate way.
If you’ve ever felt numb or detached after trauma, this video will help you understand what’s happening in your nervous system and how to take small, safe steps toward feeling again. Healing is possible—and you don’t have to do it alone.
00:00 Intro: Numbing and Dissociation
00:45 What is Emotional Numbness and Why Does It Happen?
01:44 Freeze: The Hidden Trauma Response
02:34 5 Reasons You Feel Numb
03:55 Numbing as a Childhood Coping Skill
04:46 5 Ways to Feel Again
05:14 1) Be Curious with Your Emotional Numbness
06:22 2) Connect with Your Body
07:28 3) Restore Your Sense of Safety
08:30 4) Ask What’s Behind the Numbness
09:41 5) Act Out the Emotion
11:07 Healing Emotional Numbness to Restore Feeling
11:58 Embodiment Practices for Trauma Healing
Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell
FREE Mental Health Resources: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/free-resources
Check out my podcast, Therapy in a Nutshell: https://tinpodcast.podbean.com/
Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health.
In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction.
And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe
If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ or 988 or your local emergency services.
Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC