TL;DR –While Inside Out 2 beautifully expands emotional complexity by introducing anxiety, shame, and envy at age thirteen, those with relational trauma backgrounds know these emotions often arrive much earlier—anxiety frequently runs the control panel alongside anger from a young age when safety and stability are compromised. The film's panic attack scene, showing anxiety spiraling into a hurricane with frozen fear at its center, viscerally captures what many trauma survivors experience daily, while the concept of personality architecture evolving through experience reflects how trauma can maladaptively shape our core sense of self. Research confirms that childhood trauma significantly increases mental health challenges during adolescence, making Riley's journey through puberty with supportive parents a stark contrast to those navigating the same developmental chaos without emotional safety nets.
The movie's wisdom lies in showing that anxiety doesn't need to be eliminated but rather given appropriate, bounded tasks—like studying for a Spanish test instead of running the entire emotional headquarters. This mirrors therapeutic approaches that work with anxiety rather than against it, acknowledging its protective function while preventing it from overwhelming the system. Most importantly, the film validates the complexity of holding multiple emotions simultaneously, showing that healing doesn't mean choosing between joy and sadness but learning to integrate all parts of our emotional experience into a coherent, if imperfect, whole.
I share insights about Pixar’s sequel Inside Out 2 and how it might apply to those who come from traumatic backgrounds.
Two weeks ago I shared my reflections about Inside Out. I had introduced my five year old daughter to the movie for the first time. And saw it again for the first time since 2015!
Introducing her to it was the precursor to taking her to our favorite theater to see the sequel Inside Out 2. And in today’s piece, I’m going to share my insights about the sequel as a mom and trauma therapist. Specifically with a lens as to how this might apply to those of us who come from relational trauma backgrounds.
A trauma therapist and mom’s thoughts on Inside Out 2.
- Obviously, I was happy to see an inclusion of a broader range of emotions represented in this film. It’s like expanding beyond the primary colors of a paint palette to create a more beautiful nuanced picture. When a broader, more complex range of emotions comes online.
- But, realistically, research shows that the onset of more complex and nuanced emotions – like anxiety/worry, shame, envy – can onset much earlier. Earlier than what was modeled in Inside Out 2 when these emotions got introduced to Riley’s “emotional control headquarters” when she turned 13.
- And gosh, I’d be remiss in saying this but for any child who experienced relational trauma or any iteration of childhood neglect, abuse or dysfunctional that caused them to feel unsafe or that compromised their dignity, anxiety would have likely “come online” a heck of a lot sooner than 13 and, as research suggests, been at the helm of the proverbial control panel alongside anger as the dominant feeling states.
- So that’s another thing that struck me as I watched Inside Out 2. Adolescence is inherently, painfully uncomfortable. I could see so many of us middle aged parents there with our kiddos who have yet to journey through puberty. Squirming uncomfortably at certain moments having that lived experience under our belts. So puberty is pretty painful and sucky, we can agree. Now imagine doing that in a family system devoid of the safety and stability Riley’s family provided. And imagine how much more painful still that becomes for folks with relational trauma histories. Indeed, research shows that childhood trauma significantly increases the risk of various mental health conditions during adolescence. This includes depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Adolescents who experienced multiple traumatic events show higher levels of these symptoms as they journey through puberty.
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START THE QUIZ- I felt deeply, uncomfortably seen by that scene where anxiety is losing her sh*t trying to manage Riley’s critical soccer scrimmage performance. That scene – with a hurricane of anxiety whirling around with fear and frozenness at the center leading to Riley on the verge of a panic attack – will likely be hauntingly familiar for any of who live with anxiety full-stop and/or as a result of our trauma histories. Between that scene and Louisa’s anthemic “Surface Pressure” you basically have my autobiography. Anyone else out there relate?
- I was so delighted to see the concept of the architecture of personality concretized into an image in Inside Out 2. Research tells us that personality development involves both temperament (natural tendencies) and character (individual differences in goals and values shaped by experience). These multidimensional components interact to form a coherent personality structure. So that’s why we see one version of Riley’s personality architecture early in the movie up in headquarters, replaced by another structure more informed by anxiety, and then finally a cohesive one that contains both the pre-anxiety and post-anxiety experiences and emotions. Again, bearing in mind those from relational trauma histories, I’d make a case that the architecture of this personality may likely be maladaptively formed in response to their traumatic experiences even more so than their non-traumatized peers.
- And I loved how, at the end of the movie, Joy (and the other emotions) gave Anxiety a concrete, time-sensitive job (as well as soothed her via hot tea and a massage chair) to occupy her instead of attempting to run the show with bigger issues. This is a smart behavioral intervention tool – use the anxiety and don’t pretend it’s not there but instead give it a task and outlet. In the case of Inside Out 2, it was studying for the Spanish test. For you, it could be making a list, developing a project plan, etc. As the saying goes, the antidote to anxiety is action (just don’t let it be the action that takes over the whole show).
- Finally, per my last essay on Inside Out, I DID see what I had been hoping for: a blue/red memory ball that captures the nuance of dual emotions being held and experiences at the same time. And since I personally experience and professionally witness this dual emotional often, I was delighted to see it represented.
Understanding Your Emotional Headquarters Through Therapy
For those who recognized themselves in Inside Out 2’s anxious hurricane or whose emotional control panel has been dominated by anxiety and anger since childhood, therapy offers a space to understand and reorganize your internal emotional headquarters.
A trauma-informed therapist can help you explore why certain emotions took control early—often as brilliant survival strategies in unsafe environments—and support you in gradually inviting other emotions back to the panel. This work involves not eliminating anxiety (it’s there for good reason) but rather teaching it appropriate boundaries, much like Joy did in the film by giving Anxiety specific tasks rather than full control.
Through the therapeutic process, you can begin rebuilding your personality architecture to reflect not just survival responses but also your capacity for joy, creativity, and connection. For those recognizing these patterns and wondering about their origins, exploring whether your childhood was actually traumatic can help validate why your emotional headquarters might look different from Riley’s.
The therapeutic relationship itself becomes a safe space where all your emotions—even the ones that arrived too early or took too much control—are welcomed, understood, and gradually integrated into a more balanced internal system.
Wrapping up.
I honestly loved this movie. I love the Inside Out series. And I wish Pixar would just develop a whole slew of them. (cough cough, I’d particularly love to see a middle aged mom inner life expanded upon!)
Do I think they’re the whole of what’s needed when it comes to emotional psychoeducation? No.
Do I think they do a marvelous job at starting the conversation so more emotional psychoeducation can happen? 100% yes.
If you haven’t seen Inside Out and Inside Out 2, I hope you’ll prioritize doing so.
Whether you come from a relational trauma background or not, they’re truly delightful and helpful and validating little films.
And now I’d love to hear from you in the comments below:
Did you get to see Inside Out 2 yet? If so, what did YOU love about this movie? What’s one observation you took from the movie that would be helpful for someone from a relational trauma background to hear?
If you feel so inclined, please leave a message so our community of 30,000 blog readers can benefit from your share and wisdom.
Here’s to healing relational trauma and creating thriving lives on solid foundations.
Warmly,
Annie
References
- Russell, J., & Paris, F. (1994). Do Children acquire Concepts for Complex Emotions Abruptly?. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 17, 349 – 365. https://doi.org/10.1177/016502549401700207.
- Kaltiala-Heino, R., Marttunen, M., Rantanen, P., & Rimpelä, M. (2003). Early puberty is associated with mental health problems in middle adolescence.. Social science & medicine, 57 6, 1055-64 . https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-9536(02)00480-X.
- Suliman, S., Mkabile, S., Fincham, D., Ahmed, R., Stein, D., & Seedat, S. (2009). Cumulative effect of multiple trauma on symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression in adolescents.. Comprehensive psychiatry, 50 2, 121-7 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2008.06.006.
- Cloninger, C. (2003). Completing the Psychobiological Architecture of Human Personality Development: Temperament, Character, and Coherence. , 159-181. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-0357-6_8.
