4 Trauma Coping Mechanisms That Keep You Stuck in Fight-or-Flight (And What You Can Do Instead)
If you’ve experienced childhood trauma, long-term stress, or anxiety that never quite seems to go away, it’s possible your coping strategies are actually keeping you stuck in survival mode.
As a trauma therapist in Austin, TX, I often work with high-achieving professionals who appear calm, competent, and “put together”—yet underneath the surface, they feel wired, disconnected, and emotionally drained.
Many of them don’t even realize that their nervous system is still operating in fight-or-flight mode.
Why? Because the coping tools they’ve relied on for years—discipline, routines, numbing, even overworking—are often praised by the outside world. But when driven by unresolved trauma, these same tools can reinforce stress patterns and prevent true healing.
Let’s explore four trauma-related coping mechanisms that can quietly keep your nervous system stuck in high alert—and how trauma-informed therapy can help you begin to unwind them.
1. Rigid Routines
When Control Feels Safer Than Flexibility
When your past felt unpredictable or chaotic, creating structure can feel like a survival skill. And to some extent, it is. Routines can offer a sense of control that feels essential for safety.
But when routines become inflexible—when minor disruptions cause anxiety, irritability, or panic—they may be operating as trauma responses, not just time management tools.
In trauma therapy sessions here in Austin, I often help clients explore the deeper beliefs that fuel this hyper-control. For many, the nervous system has learned that predictability = safety. So any deviation from that can trigger a cascade of stress hormones, reinforcing the belief that “if I don’t stay in control, something bad will happen.”
Healing means learning to tolerate the discomfort of change without it sending your system into alarm mode.
2. Subtle Numbing
Using Alcohol to “Unwind”
A glass of wine at the end of the day. A cocktail during social events. Many high-achieving women use alcohol casually—but for some, it becomes a silent strategy to numb the weight of anxiety or intrusive thoughts.
Alcohol may feel like it helps you relax, but when it’s used regularly to self-soothe, it can prevent your nervous system from learning how to downshift on its own.
Instead of processing or releasing the stress, the body stays in a suppressed, high-tension state—creating more volatility and emotional fatigue over time. In trauma therapy, we often unpack these cycles with curiosity and compassion, helping clients find gentler ways to self-regulate that don’t leave them more disconnected.
3. True Crime Obsession
The “Comfort” of Staying On Guard
Podcasts. Documentaries. Survival stories. Many trauma survivors are drawn to true crime content—and understandably so. It can feel validating, or even empowering, to study worst-case scenarios and feel prepared.
But here’s the catch: Your nervous system doesn’t always know it’s entertainment.
Constant exposure to fear-based media can keep your body in a state of low-grade panic, reinforcing beliefs like “the world isn’t safe” or “I have to be vigilant at all times.”
Over time, this can deepen anxiety, make sleep and rest difficult, and feed chronic hypervigilance. If you're a trauma survivor living in Austin, TX and struggling with anxiety, one step toward relief might be simply choosing to protect your peace—especially in what you consume.
4. Overdoing It at the Gym
Is It Regulating or Avoiding?
Movement is a powerful part of healing—but it’s also a space where trauma can hide. High-intensity workouts like bootcamps, cycling, or HIIT can mimic the very sensations of fight-or-flight: increased heart rate, shallow breathing, adrenaline.
For many clients I work with in therapy, exercise can sometimes become a way to “outrun” emotions—constantly challenging and pushing the body instead of learning to rest with it.
When exercise is used to avoid stillness, we rob the nervous system of its chance to experience safety in slowness. That’s why part of healing often includes practicing restorative movement—stretching, breathwork, yoga—alongside trauma-informed therapy that helps the body finally feel safe.
Healing Isn’t About “Getting Over It.”
It’s About Learning to Feel Safe Again.
If you’ve relied on these coping strategies, it’s not because you’re broken—it’s because they worked. They helped you survive.
But survival mode isn’t meant to be a permanent state. You deserve tools that help you feel calm, connected, and fully present—not just “functional.”
As a trauma therapist in Austin, I help high-achieving professionals work through the underlying nervous system patterns that fuel anxiety, hyper-independence, and emotional disconnection.
Ready to Shift From Survival to Healing?
If you’re looking for an online trauma therapist in Austin, TX who knows how to effectively support high-achieving professionals and childhood trauma survivors who are ready to gently move out of fight-or-flight and into a life that feels calmer, more connected, and authentically yours.—I’d love to support you.
💬 I offer a free 20 minute phone consultation so we can talk through what you’ve been carrying and explore whether trauma therapy may be a good fit.
Let’s work together to create more space for rest, safety, and true emotional freedom.