Bad experiences, negative emotions, or deep pain of an unforgettable moment that lingers can sometimes affect us in what feels like an irreversible way. This is where trauma enters. Trauma is defined as a deeply distressing or disturbing experience. Those traumatic experiences in our lives are unchangeable, and they may affect us or keep affecting us in the future. Although we cannot undo the past, we can heal from them, and know that healing is still possible.
Emotional and psychological trauma is the result of extraordinarily frightening or distressful events that shatter your sense of security or make you feel helpless and can lead to challenges in functioning or normally coping afterward. In these cases, those memories repeatedly replay, and a traumatized person will have trouble controlling them. The side effects can include anxiety, feeling numb, disconnected, and severe trust issues towards other people.
Traumatic events are not always personal physical experiences. Any experience that causes you to feel intense negative emotions, can be traumatic — such as witnessing, watching, or hearing something. The depth of trauma relates to the intensity of negative emotions felt about the experience. In other words, the same experience could have different effects on different people. For you, it might be traumatic, but not for others. Some causes of emotional and psychological trauma:.
Primary involvement in an event is not necessary for trauma to occur. For example, it is highly unlikely that any of us will ever be the direct victims of a terrorist attack or a plane crash. Still, exposure to awful images on social media and news channels of such victims repeatedly can create traumatic stress and overwhelm the nervous system.
But the good news is, you can make healing changes and move on with life whether the trauma happened years ago or yesterday; and regardless of the cause. Childhood experiences and interactions significantly influence the architecture of developing brains.
Positive childhood experiences contribute to healthy and productive adulthood. As a result, a person experiences high levels of emotional, psychological, and physical distress that temporarily disrupts their ability to function normally in day-to-day life.
Common reactions include a range of mental, emotional, physical and behavioural responses. Children and young people can react to trauma very differently to adults, and often in surprising ways. For information on how to talk to children and young people about trauma:.
Once the distressing event is over, you may find yourself trying to make sense of the event. This can include thinking about:. There are a number of strategies that can be put in place to help a person resolve traumatic reactions. Some common well identified examples include:.
Emergency mode gives people the capacity to access a lot of energy in a short period of time to maximise the chance of survival. Most people only stay in emergency mode for a short period of time or until the immediate threat has passed. However, being in emergency mode uses up vital energy supplies and this is why people often feel quite tired afterwards.
The normal healing and recovery process involves the body coming down out of a state of heightened arousal. In other words, the internal alarms turn off, the high levels of energy subside, and the body re-sets itself to a normal state of balance and equilibrium.
Typically, this should occur within approximately one month of the event. Trauma experts Dr Rob Gordon and Anne Leadbeater share valuable insights on coping with trauma, helping others who have experienced trauma, and seeking different ways to move forward. Listen to our trauma and recovery podcast. Traumatic stress can cause very strong reactions in some people and may become chronic ongoing.
Seek professional help if you:. After a distressing event, some people find their reactions are serious and do not gradually subside after a month. Posttraumatic stress disorder. National Alliance on Mental Illness. Rothbaum BO. Psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder in adults. What is posttraumatic stress disorder?
American Psychiatric Association. Lifestyle changes recommended for PTSD patients. Krieger CA expert opinion. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Sawchuk CN expert opinion. Raskind MA, et al. Trial of prazosin for post-traumatic stress disorder in military veterans. The New England Journal of Medicine. Hall-Flavin DK expert opinion.
June 27, Related How trauma can affect memory Post-traumatic stress: How can you help your loved one? Associated Procedures Acupuncture Cognitive behavioral therapy Psychotherapy. News from Mayo Clinic Acute stress disorder: How can you help a loved one? It can also leave you feeling numb, disconnected, and unable to trust other people. The more frightened and helpless you feel, the more likely you are to be traumatized. Viewing these images over and over can overwhelm your nervous system and create traumatic stress.
Whatever the cause of your trauma, and whether it happened years ago or yesterday, you can make healing changes and move on with your life. Experiencing trauma in childhood can result in a severe and long-lasting effect. When childhood trauma is not resolved, a sense of fear and helplessness carries over into adulthood, setting the stage for further trauma. However, even if your trauma happened many years ago, there are steps you can take to overcome the pain, learn to trust and connect to others again, and regain your sense of emotional balance.
We all react to trauma in different ways, experiencing a wide range of physical and emotional reactions. Trauma symptoms typically last from a few days to a few months, gradually fading as you process the unsettling event. Whether or not a traumatic event involves death, you as a survivor must cope with the loss, at least temporarily, of your sense of safety.
The natural reaction to this loss is grief. Like people who have lost a loved one, you need to go through a grieving process. The following tips can help you cope with the sense of grief, heal from the trauma, and move on with your life. As well as burning off adrenaline and releasing endorphins, exercise and movement can actually help repair your nervous system. Try to exercise for 30 minutes or more on most days. Exercise that is rhythmic and engages both your arms and legs—such as walking, running, swimming, basketball, or even dancing—works best.
Add a mindfulness element. Instead of focusing on your thoughts or distracting yourself while you exercise, really focus on your body and how it feels as you move. Notice the sensation of your feet hitting the ground, for example, or the rhythm of your breathing, or the feeling of wind on your skin. Rock climbing, boxing, weight training, or martial arts can make this easier—after all, you need to focus on your body movements during these activities in order to avoid injury.
Following a trauma, you may want to withdraw from others, but isolation only makes things worse. Connecting to others face to face will help you heal, so make an effort to maintain your relationships and avoid spending too much time alone.
In fact, for some people, that can just make things worse. Comfort comes from feeling engaged and accepted by others. Ask for support. Turn to a trusted family member, friend, counselor, or clergyman. Reconnect with old friends. Join a support group for trauma survivors. Connecting with others who are facing the same problems can help reduce your sense of isolation, and hearing how others cope can help inspire you in your own recovery. As well as helping others, volunteering can be a great way to challenge the sense of helplessness that often accompanies trauma.
Remind yourself of your strengths and reclaim your sense of power by helping others.
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