Childhood Trauma and Depression: How Unspoken Pain Becomes a Lifelong Burden

What happens when the pain of childhood is never spoken aloud — or validated? For Trina Kennedy, it meant carrying an invisible backpack of heavy rocks: unresolved grief, shame, and loneliness. That burden grew into depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts.

In this episode of Giving Voice to Depression, Trina shares her journey of living with the weight of childhood trauma — and how finding safe spaces, supportive adults, and therapy helped her begin to unpack it. Alongside reflections from hosts Terry and Carly, this conversation explores the difference between stress and trauma, why validation matters so deeply, and how healing is possible through connection and post-traumatic growth.

If you’ve ever wondered about the connection between childhood trauma and depression, or struggled to make sense of unspoken pain, Trina’s story will remind you: you are not alone, and healing is possible.

Link to Trina's website: https://trinaleekennedy.ca/

Primary Topics Covered

• The link between childhood trauma and depression
• Why unspoken pain becomes a lifelong burden
• The “backpack of rocks” metaphor for unresolved emotions
• Difference between stress and trauma — and why both matter
• The role of validation in completing the “distress loop”
• How parental responses (or lack of them) shape a child’s coping
• Suicidal thoughts in adolescence and finding life-saving support
• The importance of safe spaces and compassionate professionals
• Post-traumatic growth: transforming pain into purpose
• Why healing requires connection, not isolation

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction and purpose of the podcast  
01:12 – Mr. Rogers: “Anything human is mentionable”  
01:34 – Trina Kennedy shares her “messy middle” journey  
02:36 – How definitions of trauma have shifted  
03:45 – Stress vs. trauma: why the distinction matters  
04:28 – Trina’s childhood and relational trauma with her father  
06:36 – The “backpack of rocks” metaphor for unprocessed pain  
08:34 – Accumulated pain leading to depression and suicidal thoughts  
09:43 – Hospitalization at 16 after a suicide attempt  
10:34 – Finding a life-changing psychologist who provided safe space  
12:22 – Healing is messy but growth is possible  
12:39 – Post-traumatic growth: learning, growth, and helping others  
14:11 – What people most need to hear in their darkest moments  
15:33 – Gabor Maté’s “The Myth of Normal” and societal trauma  
17:41 – Trauma as a normal response to abnormal conditions  
20:21 – Why adults must validate children’s emotions  
22:53 – Adults admitting they don’t have the answers — and why it matters  
24:26 – How consistent caring adults buffer childhood trauma  
26:01 – Somatization: when unspoken pain shows up in the body  
27:19 – Resources and closing reflections  

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