The Body Remembers: The Link Between Childhood Trauma and Autoimmune Disease

As a trauma therapist, I see a trend that often surprises clients. People come in, seeking help for stress, depression, and anxiety. During initial sessions, almost as an aside, they may mention they have chronic fatigue, unexplained pain, or an autoimmune diagnosis. Then, usually, as we explore their histories, the trend appears: their childhoods have included experiences of adversity, neglect, misattuned parents, or emotional distress; experiences that can reverberate negatively throughout life.

What is clear from current research and neuroscience studies is that the body remembers; our immune system may carry the imprint of early traumatic stress that unfolds throughout a lifetime and expresses itself sometimes as an autoimmune disease.

What the Research Tells Us

The full picture is still emerging. Studies continue to find a link between childhood trauma and autoimmune disease. One well-known study published in Psychosomatic Medicine (Dube et al., 2009) found that adults who experienced multiple types of early trauma were significantly more likely to develop autoimmune conditions later in life.

Autoimmune diseases occur when the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues, leading to chronic inflammation and a range of symptoms, such as fatigue, joint pain, organ dysfunction, and skin problems. These may impact daily functioning. Some of the most familiar autoimmune conditions are:

• Rheumatoid arthritis

• Lupus

• Multiple sclerosis

• Psoriasis

• Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis

• Hashimoto’s thyroiditis

• Type 1 diabetes

When people experience these physical symptoms alongside unresolved emotional pain, the overlap can be confusing and even discouraging.

That’s where trauma-informed therapy can help make sense of what’s happening beneath the surface—physically and emotionally.

How Trauma Affects the Body

Childhood trauma isn’t always dramatic or obvious. For many adults who look back, it took the form of emotional neglect, chronic criticism, repeated exposure to conflict, unstable caregiving, or living with a parent who struggled with mental health or substance use. For others, it meant growing up in poverty, experiencing discrimination, or coping with environments where feelings were dismissed or minimized. 

Despite our not commonly having grasped that such a thing as childhood “traumatic” stressors exists, they have been operative and contribute negatively to our health and well-being. In fact, patterns established early in life impact how we move through the world as adults. Anxiety, depression, chronic self-doubt, trouble connecting with others, disproportionate anger, sleep difficulties, hypervigilance, irritability, and a heightened startle response are common long-term effects of persistent childhood traumatic stress.

When children are exposed to traumatic stressors, their nervous systems adapt as they were designed to do. The human body is designed to go into survival mode automatically when needed. The body releases stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline to prepare for fight, flight, freeze, or even fawn, or appeasing others to stay safe.

If a sense of danger or overwhelm becomes constant, the body never gets the signal that it’s safe to rest. Instead, the nervous system stays on high alert. Over time, this persistent activation can throw off the body’s balance. The immune system may start to misread signals, sometimes even turning its defenses inward. What once helped us survive begins to attack our bodies or wear us down over time.

There’s also growing evidence for epigenetic change, meaning prolonged stress can influence how certain genes are expressed. Trauma doesn’t just affect the mind; it can also alter how the body functions at a cellular level.

Living with Both: Healing the Mind and Body

Please note: This research on autoimmune symptoms does not mean autoimmune symptoms are “all in the head”. On the contrary, autoimmune conditions and their symptoms are real. Mounting scientific evidence now supports what some have always believed: there is a mind-body connection, and our emotional and physical health impact one another.

In my practice, I integrate trauma therapies like EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), including specialized EMDR protocols for chronic pain, with Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR), parts work, and mindfulness-based approaches. These methods can help with emotional regulation and strengthen a sense of self, decrease the impact of chronic PTSD, and reduce overactive stress responses. With time, clients can heal from blocked-off painful and disturbing affect, emotions, and memories. Ultimately, clients can develop a greater sense of emotional safety. Addressing attachment wounding can bring discovery of greater authenticity and resilience, as well as improve management of autoimmune symptoms.

Practical Steps Toward Healing

Healing from both childhood trauma and autoimmune challenges is not about perfection or cure. It’s about creating space for understanding, compassion, and regulation. Here are some practices that can help:

• Mindfulness and grounding: These can help increase comfort in the present life, improve stress management, and also reduce reactivity.

• Journaling: Through writing, you can enhance self-discovery, find emotional patterns and triggers, as well as learn more about healing, hopes, and dreams.

• Self-compassion: Be gentle with yourself. Healing includes the acceptance of positive emotions and states of mind, such as pride and peace, as well as the growth of self-esteem.

• Realistic pacing: Your worth as a human being isn’t measured by productivity.

• Honoring your body’s limits actually supports long-term healing.

• Grieving loss: It’s natural to mourn the energy, mobility, or freedom you once had. Allowing that grief process can bring deep emotional relief.

You Don’t Have to Heal Alone

Living with chronic illness and unresolved trauma can feel isolating, but you are not alone. Addressing the psychological aspects of autoimmune disease can lead to improved health outcomes and a more profound sense of peace.

If this resonates with you, therapy can be a space to reconnect with your body, regulate your stress response, and rebuild trust in yourself. Healing doesn’t happen overnight, but it happens through relationship, safety, and compassion.

Call me at (845) 202-9774 or reach out through my secure contact form. Together, we can work toward greater balance between mind, body, and spirit.