Trauma Resolution
” I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.”
– Carl Gustav Jung
The American Psychological Association defined trauma as “any disturbing experience that results in significant fear, helplessness, dissociation, confusion, or other disruptive feelings intense enough to have a long-lasting negative effect on a person’s attitudes, behavior, and other aspects of functioning. Traumatic events include those caused by human behavior (e.g., rape, war, industrial accidents) as well as by nature (e.g., earthquakes) and often challenge an individual’s view of the world as a just, safe, and predictable place” (2020).
Types of Traumatic Experiences
- Emotional, Physical, Psychological, or Sexual Abuse
- Community Violence
- Mobbing
- Marginalization, Discrimination, Bullying, Harassment
- Experiencing Natural Disasters
- Early Childhood Trauma
- Intimate Partner Violence
- Medical Trauma
- Refugee Trauma
- Sex Trafficking
- Terrorism
- Traumatic Grief and Loss
- War, Combat Experiences
A person who has experienced trauma may feel a wide range of emotional and physical responses which may vary from day to day or change based on perception of risk or threat. Initial reactions to trauma can include exhaustion, confusion, sadness, anxiety, agitation, numbness, dissociation, confusion, physical arousal, and blunted affect. Emotional outbursts and struggles with managing or coping with distress are often present and can lead to emotional withdrawal. It is also common to experience flashbacks of the traumatic event through dissociative experiences and nightmares. Our bodies can also experience a chronic state of hyperarousal, where we feel like we are in a constant state of alertness. Indicators of more severe responses include continuous distress without periods of relative calm or rest, severe dissociation symptoms, and intense intrusive recollections that continue despite a return to safety.
A person who has experienced trauma may feel a wide range of emotional and physical responses which may vary from day to day or change based on perception of risk or threat. Initial reactions to trauma can include exhaustion, confusion, sadness, anxiety, agitation, numbness, dissociation, confusion, physical arousal, and blunted affect. Emotional outbursts and struggles with managing or coping with distress are often present and can lead to emotional withdrawal. It is also common to experience flashbacks of the traumatic event through dissociative experiences and nightmares. Our bodies can also experience a chronic state of hyperarousal, where we feel like we are in a constant state of alertness. Indicators of more severe responses include continuous distress without periods of relative calm or rest, severe dissociation symptoms, and intense intrusive recollections that continue despite a return to safety.
Common Traumatic Reactions
- Denial, fear, anger
- Shame
- Confusion
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Feeling numb
- Irritability, difficulty concentrating
- Physiological symptoms
- Difficulty sleeping, nightmares
- Paranoia, feeling jumpy
- Intrusive thoughts and imagery
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
PTSD develops when the symptoms of trauma progress and worsen over the months following a traumatic event. This is further complicated in experiences of complex trauma where multiple traumas have occurred over a period of time during the person’s lifespan. PTSD can negatively impact a person’s ability to function in many areas of life.
- Severe anxiety
- Flashbacks
- Nightmares
- Dissociated Responses
- Persistent intrusive memories of the traumatic event
- Avoidance behaviors
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
PTSD develops when the symptoms of trauma progress and worsen over the months following a traumatic event. This is further complicated in experiences of complex trauma where multiple traumas have occurred over a period of time during the person’s lifespan. PTSD can negatively impact a person’s ability to function in many areas of life.
- Severe anxiety
- Flashbacks
- Nightmares
- Dissociated Responses
- Persistent intrusive memories of the traumatic event
- Avoidance behaviors
