Understanding Trauma

For the rest of this week, I'm going to focus on Trauma and how it can greatly impact a person's life and ability to deal with the every day.

First, we need a general understanding of what trauma is and how the different types have an overall effect on a person's life. According to Psychology Today, there are multiple types of trauma that one can experience in one lifetime.

ACUTE TRAUMA

Typically short in duration, this occurs as a response to a one-time event like a car crash, sexual assault, or the loss of a loved one that is unexpected. While a person experiencing this type of trauma suffers the immediate effects, one does not tend to see the more permanent reactions that other types of trauma can create over time.

CHRONIC TRAUMA

This is repeated, prolonged trauma that can stem from things like being bullied over and over, being neglected physically or emotionally, being abused, or experiencing Domestic violence. People who experience chronic trauma will often find their responses to the everyday ups and downs in life a bit harder to manage as they are often stuck inside that "fight or flight."

COMPLEX TRAUMA

(This is what I have) This trauma stems from experiencing repeated traumatic events over a prolonged period of time where the sufferer feels like there is no escape. People with this type of trauma often feel "trapped" inside a cycle of being sad, fearful, and worried because they survived by adapting their behaviors to be in a full-time state of fight or flight. Often someone with Complex Trauma is hyper-vigilant, constantly worrying about when the next "shoe will drop" and may develop coping mechanisms like Disassociation as a way of getting a break from the worry that plagues everyday life.

While there are other types of trauma and responses that are related to them, the above-listed ones have plenty of research and luckily treatments behind them.

I will write another article tonight that explains how each of these different types of trauma impacts a person's ability to navigate in the day-to-day world.

The more you understand, the more you know, the easier it will be for you to be there for someone who is going through these things. The easier it will also be for you to empower yourself to ask for help if you feel like one of these descriptions is much like yourself.

There is science that shows that a traumatized person's brain literally rewires itself after prolonged episodes and they do NOT think like the person who has not gone through those experiences.

It is why saying "get over it," ignoring someone who needs you, telling someone to "deal with it," or just outright being mean will NEVER EVER work. You wouldn't tell someone with cancer to "get over it," but when it comes to mental health issues, people use that phrase all the time.

I am hoping these articles and information will help to spread some awareness on the fact that a person with a mental health issue is not a throwaway person. They are not less than, smaller than, or worse than the people who do not have these issues.

Yes, it can be frustrating.

Yes, it can be hard to understand.

Just keep in mind that for a person who is used to being hurt or abused or neglected, it takes an enormous amount of courage to reach out, to ask for help. Even acknowledging their pain in the moment, knowing you can't fix anything, can help more than you realize because they have allowed themselves to be vulnerable with you.

If we took the time to understand, we would have great empathy and less frustration I think. So that is what I am going to try to do.

As always thanks for reading. Come back later for part 2

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