Understanding Trauma

Understanding Trauma

Trauma is a response to an intensely stressful event(s) or situations. The effects can be long-lasting, but healing is possible.

Traumatic events can happen at any age and have lasting effects on your physical and mental well-being. Each person’s experience is unique, but there are common causes, and many people share some symptoms of post-traumatic stress, like anxiety, flashbacks, and sleep disruption.

Some in the medical community dispute what constitutes trauma. As researchers and therapists learn more, conversations about trauma’s definition are ever-evolving based on new evidence.

With proper treatment and social support — especially through trauma therapy — many people can overcome these negative effects, experience an improved quality of life, and move toward healing.

What is trauma? 

Trauma refers to your response following an event that psychologically overwhelms you, often resulting in shock, denial, and changes in the body, mind, and behavior.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), trauma is an event you experience as harmful or life threatening. It has lasting adverse effects on your mental, physical, emotional, social, or spiritual well-being.

Trauma is typically associated with significant events such as physical or sexual assault, violence, or accidents. But it can also involve responses to repeated events, like ongoing emotional abuse or childhood neglect.

Not everyone who has experienced a traumatic event will have long lasting effects. Around 20% of people who experience a traumatic event will develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and many others might still have subthreshold symptoms of post-traumatic stress.

Complex trauma

Trauma that repeatedly occurs over time can have a cumulative impact. This is known as complex trauma.

Complex trauma is often associated with childhood trauma. Early experiences of trauma can leave a deep imprint on your worldview, sense of self, and relationships later in life.

What are the mental and physical effects of trauma? 

Trauma can affect many areas of your life, including your emotional, social, and physical well-being.

During extreme stress, the body and mind become overwhelmed, engaging the nervous system’s fight, flight, or freeze response.

Symptoms of post-traumatic stress are aftereffects of your overwhelmed nervous system — your body and mind can’t fully process the traumatic events as they are happening.

Common symptoms after trauma include:

• intrusive thoughts, including flashbacks and nightmares
• avoiding things that remind you of the trauma, including people, places, or objects
• being easily startled or “jumpy”
• being activated by triggers that remind you of the trauma, whether consciously or subconsciously
• changes in how you see yourself, such as believing you are “bad,” or feeling excess guilt or shame
• a small window of tolerance, meaning you feel overwhelmed easily or have difficulty controlling your emotions

Traumatic stress can show up in your physical health, too. Body-based effects are known as somatic symptoms and can include:

• chronic pain
• sleep problems
• chest pain
• headaches
• chronic pain

Trauma is less about the event and more about how you responded. But some events are more likely to lead to trauma than others.

Instead of asking "What Is Wrong with You" , we should be asking "What Happened To You"

The book by Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Bruce Perry "What Happened To You" Is such a great way to understand Trauma!!!  Below Is a short discussion between  Dr. Perry and Oprah Winfrey to get you started in better understanding and defining trauma...

Here is a short video link about this information on Trauma:

https://youtu.be/uUAL8RVvkyY