What is Trauma? A Definition and Treatment Options

When most people hear the term trauma, the usual idea is an accident survivor with injuries and a scary recollection of the ordeal. If not that, then it may be that of a soldier dealing with battlefield stress. Though such incidents do cause trauma, there is more to trauma than just that.

What is Trauma?

Psychological trauma is “a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury” (Merriam-Webster).

The most common causes of this are terrible events such as abuse (i.e. sexual, physical), criminal assault (e.g. rape, armed robbery), exposure to war, or a near death experience (e.g. accident, natural disaster).

Trauma, however, may also occur due to other unfortunate events such as neglect, abandonment, separation (e.g. divorce or break in a relationship), or even a reaction to major surgery or a major move. All of these may affect a person’s emotions, negatively impacting how they function.

Symptoms of Trauma

Among the common trauma symptoms are the following:

• Anxiety and fear, including being easily startled
• Body aches such as headaches or stomachaches
• Difficulty making decisions or concentrating
• Feelings of helplessness, hopelessness and/or sadness
• Guilty feelings
• Isolation from others, including distrust of others
• Mood swings (e.g. easily irritated, anger outbursts)
• Nightmares and / or flashbacks
• Numbness
• Shock
• Trouble sleeping

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

In some situations, those who experience trauma may develop PTSD, especially if the trauma was sexual in nature or if the person faced a near-death experience or serious harm. Such an event, however, may not have been directly experienced.

It may also have been witnessed, experienced through repeated exposure to traumatic situations (e.g. emergency first responders to accidents or disasters), or be caused by knowing about a loved one experiencing such trauma (e.g. sudden death of a loved one).

People with PTSD somehow relive the terrible situation through flashbacks, bad dreams or frightening thoughts. This causes them to become distressed physically (e.g. tenseness, easily startled), cognitively (e.g. difficulty concentrating), or emotionally (e.g. guilt, mood swings).

To prevent this, they avoid environments or situations that may remind them of the trauma (e.g. choosing not to ride a car anymore after a vehicular accident) or they may choose to avoid thinking about similar situations.

Complex Trauma

Complex trauma is the result of multiple traumatic events occurring over a period of time. This usually happens in an interpersonal context especially during childhood (though adults may experience it as well). This could be chronic neglect, repeated abuse (sexual or physical), or other forms of maltreatment.

Complex trauma in children affects their development. One study showed that the children’s stress response systems seemingly changed as their primary focus was safety and survival rather than activities normal to children. (van der Kolk, 2005) Another study mentioned that traumatized children have heightened arousal levels all the time. (Perry, 2006)

Upon reaching adulthood, victims of complex trauma often deal with much insecurity and are at risk for depression, substance abuse, suicide, or other unwanted situations.

Three Pillars for Healing

Because of the seriousness of the trauma, patience is required for healing. Bath (2008) suggested three areas or “three pillars” of concern for a traumatized individual.

1. Safety

A traumatized person needs a safe place, physically and emotionally. In a safe environment, the person will be able to better express their feelings and process the event. If the perpetrator is a loved one, this may mean leaving home for a safer place for someone to care and protect them.

2. Connections

Many trauma victims want to be left alone. Allowing this, however, may not lead to healing; instead, it may cause depression and loneliness which will further complicate the problem. In order to heal, trauma victims must be able to talk about and process what happened to them, in the proper time of course. This is why counseling and support groups are very helpful for them.

3. Managing the Emotions

After ensuring their safety and making sure they are given the right support, the trauma victim must learn to manage their emotional responses.

• Deep Breathing: One way to calm unwanted physical responses is to breathe deeply. It is a proven way to relax the body, similar to what those doing meditation or yoga do.
• Mindfulness: Rather than letting the fear and anxiety control them, the trauma victim must take control instead. This means controlling their thoughts and being more aware of their physical responses (e.g. palpitations, tenseness) so they can take steps to relax.
• Staying Healthy: A sound body helps maintain a sound mind. A proper diet, exercise (with the doctor’s consent), sufficient rest, and avoidance of unhealthy substances (alcohol, cigarettes, narcotics) can ensure that there are no other complications. A healthy body boosts emotional levels which can help if the trauma victim is also depressed.
• Other means to manage stress: Other than deep breathing, activities like yoga may help the victim control their body’s and mind’s responses. Journaling may also help them psychologically and emotionally.

Healing will take much time and there are many situations (e.g. birthdays, holidays) that may trigger emotional feelings. But these are normal obstacles to overcome in the healing process. However, should there be overwhelming negative feelings which interfere with daily functions or lead towards suicidal or homicidal thoughts, then professional help should be sought out soon.

Trauma Treatment

The negative effects of trauma can really disrupt one’s normal life. Fortunately, there are effective treatments to get the person’s life back on track. Here are two effective approaches:

1. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

It is theorized that the stress caused by trauma causes the mind to store the traumatic memories without fully processing them. The whole situation (e.g. images, feelings, body sensations) is just stuck there, causing the person to experience flashbacks and other negative effects.

Research has shown that bilateral stimulation (e.g. auditory stimulation, tapping, or eye movement patterns from left to right) using the EDMR protocol may cause the memories to become “unstuck.” The mind is then able to process the events in a healthy way, making it effective for PTSD.

2. Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (TF-CBT)

TF-CBT is another type of trauma therapy that incorporates the usual cognitive approaches along with family therapy. By educating the parents or caregivers in how to help the trauma victim, the healing process becomes better as there is support both at the care facility and at home.

With TF-CBT, it is not only the trauma victim that benefits but the family member too (usually the non-offending parent in the case of child abuse).

Aside from emotion regulation, relaxation training, and the cognitive processing of the trauma, parenting skills may also be taught as well as other ways to ensure future safety and development.

Moving past a traumatic event is difficult but not impossible, especially if help is sought out. If you or someone you know is suffering from trauma, contact a therapist soon to help you heal from those psychological wounds and get your life back on track.