One of the most unsettling parts of trauma recovery is inconsistency.
One week, symptoms ease.
The next, anxiety spikes, sleep worsens, or old reactions return.
Many people interpret this as failure.
They think:
“I was doing better.”
“Why is this coming back?”
“Did I do something wrong?”
But symptom fluctuation is not a sign that healing is failing.
It is often a sign that healing is actually underway.
As Reshie explains in the conversation:
“When a system starts to change, it becomes more sensitive before it becomes more stable.”
Healing Is Not Linear Because the Nervous System Is Not Linear
The nervous system does not heal in a straight line.
It heals in waves.
Trauma recovery involves reorganising patterns that once kept the system alive. As those patterns loosen, the system may temporarily feel less predictable.
As Reshie puts it:
“The system is renegotiating safety. That process isn’t smooth.”
Periods of increased symptoms often occur when:
- Capacity is expanding
- Old defences begin to soften
- Sensations that were previously numbed start to return
- The system experiments with new responses
This does not mean something has gone wrong. It means the system is adjusting.
Why Symptoms Can Increase Before They Decrease
When trauma responses first formed, they served a protective purpose.
Hyperarousal, avoidance, numbing, or dissociation helped the system survive.
As these responses loosen, the system may briefly experience more sensation or emotion before it learns a new equilibrium.
This is especially common as people expand their window of tolerance. As the window widens, more internal experience becomes accessible, including sensations that were previously suppressed.
As Reshie explains:
“What was held down starts to come back up, not to overwhelm you, but to be integrated.”
Hyperarousal Is Often the First Symptom to Fluctuate
Many people notice symptom fluctuations most clearly through hyperarousal.
Sleep becomes lighter.
The body feels restless.
Thoughts speed up.
The system feels “on” again.
These patterns are explored in depth in are you experiencing hyperarousal, where heightened activation is understood not as anxiety alone, but as a nervous system still scanning for threat.
During healing, hyperarousal may spike when the system is:
- Testing new levels of safety
- Letting go of rigid control
- Encountering unfamiliar calm
As Reshie notes:
“A system that’s been on guard for years doesn’t relax all at once.”
Why Eliminating Symptoms Is Not the Goal
Many people approach healing with the goal of removing symptoms as quickly as possible.
While understandable, this goal can backfire.
As Reshie explains in the conversation:
“Trying to get rid of symptoms often keeps the system in fight with itself.”
This is why why eliminating triggers doesn’t work in trauma recovery is such an important concept. Triggers and symptoms are signals, not enemies.
When symptoms are listened to rather than suppressed, the system learns that it does not need to escalate to be heard.
Why Rest and Calm Can Temporarily Increase Symptoms
A surprising pattern in trauma recovery is that symptoms sometimes intensify when life slows down.
People may feel more anxious on weekends.
Sleep worsens during holidays.
Stillness feels uncomfortable.
This happens because survival patterns are no longer being masked by busyness.
As explored in why relaxation feels unsafe for trauma survivors, calm itself can be unfamiliar to a nervous system that learned to stay alert.
As Reshie explains:
“When the noise stops, the system finally notices what it’s been carrying.”
This phase often passes as regulation deepens, but it can be confusing without context.
Fluctuation Is a Signal to Adjust Pacing, Not to Stop
Symptom increases often indicate that pacing needs adjustment, not abandonment.
As Reshie explains:
“Symptoms tell us where the system’s edge is.”
This information helps guide:
- Slowing the pace
- Increasing grounding
- Reducing load
- Strengthening regulation before going further
This is why trauma-informed work treats symptoms as feedback rather than obstacles.
Understanding diagnosis and treatment of psychological trauma can help reframe symptom fluctuation as part of a responsive, adaptive process rather than a setback.
Stabilisation Comes From Consistency, Not Perfection
Over time, as the nervous system experiences repeated cycles of activation and safe return, symptoms begin to stabilise.
Fluctuations become:
- Less intense
- Shorter in duration
- Easier to recognise early
As Reshie puts it:
“Healing doesn’t mean nothing ever spikes. It means spikes don’t take over.”
This is the quiet but profound shift that marks real recovery.
Watch the Full Conversation
This article is drawn from the same in-depth conversation between Reshie and Katrina, where they explore why symptom fluctuation is a normal and expected part of trauma recovery, and how understanding this prevents unnecessary fear or self-blame.
To hear these ideas explained with clinical clarity and lived experience, watch the full conversation below.