01/03/2026
“First and foremost, you have to take care of yourself. The world needs you. This community needs you. You are a survivor and how you survive is up to you. Just remember: emotional struggles and mood swings are a common response to trauma. You are not broken. You are human. And though we may not know each other, we share something in common—we deserve kindness, patience, and respect. We are worthy of it. And we can feel whole again. Especially when we speak and listen to each other. We can learn from one another. We can help each other heal.”
In “How Trauma Affects Mood,” Kristin Lueke reminds us that the wide range of feelings we experience as survivors is not only valid—it’s expected, given everything we’ve been through. Some days, we feel every emotion at once; other days, we might feel nothing at all. Both are natural responses to trauma.
✨ 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙬?
👇Drop it in the comments if you feel like sharing. Even a single word can remind someone else they’re not alone—and maybe help them open up too.
→ Click the link to read the full resource: https://bravercollective.org/resources/how-trauma-affects-mood
About the author:
Kristin Lueke () is a Chicana poet, essayist, and creative strategist, and a fierce advocate for dignity, joy, and collective action. She is the co-founder of Field of Practice (.ofpractice), a hyper-competent design studio creating thoughtful, useful work for purpose-driven organizations. She writes a monthly newsletter called The Animal Eats.
