“I Just Feel Disconnected”: How Feelings of Shame Relate To Experiences of Trauma in People With Psychosis

TL;DR

This study explores how feelings of shame connect past trauma to experiences of psychosis, showing that shame can maintain trauma's impact and lead to emotional disconnection.

Contribution

The study introduces new qualitative insights into how shame mediates trauma and psychosis, highlighting mechanisms like self-disconnection and isolation.

Findings

Shame can maintain the effects of trauma in people with psychosis.

Trauma-related shame leads to disconnection from the self and from aliveness.

Persistent shame from trauma results in emotional isolation.

Abstract

Research suggests shame plays a mediatory role in the relationship between trauma and psychosis, however, there is limited information on how this may occur. This qualitative study explored how experiences of shame in people living with psychosis is linked to past trauma. Fourteen adults completed semi-structured interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to develop four themes: (1) shame maintains trauma; (2) trauma-related shame drives disconnection from the self; (3) avoiding shame from trauma leads to disconnection from aliveness; and (4) pervasive shame from trauma leads to isolation. The findings suggest that shame may play a key role in maintaining the influence of trauma on sense of self and on the way people engage with the world, including in the context of psychosis. Future research could explore whether addressing shame through intervention has any impact on the influence trauma has on people experiencing psychosis.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10597-025-01525-1.