Traumas are disturbing experiences that result in significant fear, helplessness, dissociation, confusion, or other disruptive feelings that can be long-lasting and have a negative effect on the individual’s attitude, behavior, and other areas of functioning. Traumatic events include rape, war, accidents, physical violence, and terror attacks. These experiences can challenge the way an individual views the world as a safe or predictable place.
The experience of adverse experiences can be challenging for people to survive. All of us go through one or more traumatic events in life. Some of us refuse to talk about it, and some of us look for places to reach out for help. Talking about these experiences will help the individual to resolve and work on themselves to face the challenges. Traumatic events in life are inevitable and continuous in every area of life.
Traumas in adults can lead to persistent fatigue, feeling disconnected, and becoming addicted to something to cope with. These experiences alter their views about themselves and the world. Withdraw from major areas of life, and they can be self-critical about everything in life. When all this persists, the client is more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder.
Recognizing trauma matters.
The outcome of trauma is effective as seen in the individual’s behavior and emotions. The traumas impair brain functions and affect their ability to regulate their emotions. Often, the individual will be preoccupied with what happened to them. Many people wonder how they feel and behave in such ways to understand and self-reflect on why they behave and feel in different ways.
For example, if a student has blunt emotions, everyone thinks he is cold. In a therapeutic situation, the reason for his blunted emotion was the physical abuse that he experienced during his childhood. His emotions about the situation were blunt, and he coped with the trauma by neutralizing the experience and emotions in the brain.
Trauma-informed care
Trauma-informed care involves the 4 Rs: realize, recognize, respond, and resist re-traumatization. Helping the client to realize what has happened to them, which is followed by identifying how the trauma has affected their behavior and feelings, which is causing distress in all the functional areas of life.
In the example mentioned above about a boy with blunt emotions, in the counseling, he was able to understand why he was emotionless, defensive, and cold. He said, “When I experienced physical violence, nobody understood or cared enough to help me out, so I don’t know how it feels to be loved or cared for by others. Because of this, I am always cold towards everyone.”
The last step is resisting re-traumatization. A person who has experienced trauma is helpless, so here the therapist will be the person to help them manage, which will require other family members or primary caretakers to collaboratively work with the therapist. The therapist will work to make their social circle a supportive and safe space so the individual can become more resilient.
Signs of Symptoms
- Worrying a lot or feeling very anxious, sad, or fearful
- Crying often
- Having trouble thinking clearly
- Having frightening thoughts or flashbacks, reliving the experience
- Feeling angry, resentful, or irritable
- Having nightmares or difficulty sleeping
- Avoiding places or people that bring back disturbing memories and responses
- Becoming isolated from family and friends
- Having headaches
- Having stomach pain and digestive issues
- Having difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
- Having a racing heart and sweating
- Being very jumpy and easily startled
People who have experienced trauma are more likely to develop other mental health disorders like mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance abuse, and suicide. To seek help, reach out to a mental health professional who can help with dealing with the issues.
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