What is Trauma?
Nowadays, it seems the topic of trauma is everywhere. Many professions, including mental health professionals, healthcare providers, and even educators are starting to focus on including “trauma-informed” practices in their jobs. It’s not uncommon to see discussions on the internet and social media related to trauma or people sharing their own stories of healing and resilience afterwards. But what exactly is trauma, how does it happen, and why is it so important to be aware of, even if we haven’t experienced it ourselves?
Trauma Defined
Many people think of events when they think of trauma. War, violence, catastrophic accidents, injuries or illnesses…most people label would these as “traumas”. And while it is true they are “traumatic events”, trauma itself is actually the reaction to an event. The American Psychological Association defines trauma as “ an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, crime, natural disaster, physical or emotional abuse, neglect, experiencing or witnessing violence, death of a loved one, war, and more.” Simply put, trauma is not the thing you go through, but the response you have to the thing afterwards. These responses can vary, but typical symptoms of trauma can include things such as:
Hypervigilance
Intrusive thoughts, memories, imagery, or even flashbacks
Dissociative symptoms
Persistent shame, guilt, fear, anger, or other negative emotional states
Trouble sleeping
Persistent, exaggerated, or distorted negative beliefs and cognitions about self, others, or the world
Avoidance of reminders of the traumatic event
Loss of interest in things
Feeling detached or estranged from others
Reckless of self-destructive behaviors
Persistent inability to feel “positive” emotions
This is not a complete list of the ways someone way react after going through a traumatic event. But even just from this incomplete list, it is clear to see trauma can have a major impact on a person’s life, in many different ways!
What Causes Trauma?
As mentioned above, “a terrible event” is usually the trigger to someone being traumatized. In the DSM-5 (the manual used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental illnesses) one of the eight criteria necessary for a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, states that a person has to have been exposed to “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence”. Some of the examples of traumatic events given in the DSM are things such as war, actual or threatened assault, severe car accidents, or sudden catastrophic illnesses or injuries. These types of incidents are much the same as some of the examples included in the American Psychological Association’s definition of trauma and all these examples have something in common; they are clearly terrifying, shocking, life-threatening, and/or overwhelmingly painful and distressing.
However, it’s not just catastrophes than can leave us traumatized. Trauma can occur after any event our brain perceives as too overwhelming to cope with. That is the most important point in the discussion of the causes of trauma; sometimes it doesn’t matter what a person has gone through, instead it matters how their brain interpreted the situation. This is why two people can go through the exact same event (even a truly life threatening one), and only one may be traumatized. It is also why some people may end up having trauma reactions to relatively non-life-threatening events, such as minor car accidents, mild illnesses or injuries, or “chaotic” childhoods. Again, it’s not always about if an event is literally life threatening or not; if the brain believes it can’t cope with a given situation, trauma can follow.
Why it Matters
It’s thanks to the last several years of trauma research that we now understand that trauma is not just limited to extraordinary catastrophes, but can occur from what some people may describe as typical life events. Being aware of this fact can help people feel less alone and make sense of life experiences or symptoms that may previously have been confusing or seemed unexplainable. It also means more receiving appropriate treatment when working with a mental health professional.
Greater awareness of the true nature of trauma isn’t just for mental health services, though. It has also led a greater emphasis on the previously mentioned “trauma-informed care”. Trauma-informed care is about acknowledging how common trauma can be and the impact it can have on people, as well as focusing on ways to create trust and safety while minimizing and preventing harm. These types of practices can be put into place nearly anywhere, ensuring people are treated with respect, dignity, and in ways keep people safe.
Whether trauma comes from a real or perceived catastrophe, the distress experienced is much the same. Having the awareness that trauma is not just limited to violence and danger allows for better outcomes for all. And while trauma can feel hopeless, there is hope. Compassionate, trauma-informed therapy can help people regain a sense of safety, discover their resilience, and find healing.