Knowing Trauma

Hello Reader,

Welp, it has been some time since I wrote. I’m sorry!!! I was reminded of my writings earlier this week by a Reader and I had to ask myself, why did I stop? The trauma part of me wanted to label myself as lazy and worthless and yet I know that the answer is more complicated than that. It wasn’t that I was lazy, it was that I needed to prioritize a different part of my life for a bit and that is okay! I’m back at it though! Thank you, Reader, for inspiring me to get back into writing!

“Welcome back, Jon!” “Sooo I hear that word a lot, trauma. What is trauma?”

Good question, Reader! Glad to see you are still curious about your mental health. Let’s talk about trauma!

As a trauma informed therapist, I believe it is very important to inform others about the impacts of trauma as well as what to do about it. With that said, there are A LOT of factors to consider when it comes to trauma. Trauma is very complex, and I still think that us clinicians have a long way to go when it comes to understanding and treating trauma. With that said, there is still hope! We have learned much in the past few decades about trauma and treating trauma. We’ll have to explore this in multiple blogs from symptoms and behaviors to modalities and treatments in the near future.

For now, let’s see how prevalent trauma is. It is estimated that about 70% of adults will experience a traumatic event in their lifetime. The Oxford Dictionary defines trauma as, “a mental condition caused by severe shock, stress or fear, especially when the harmful effects last for a long time”. The DSM also categorizes trauma disorders through several different types. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Acute Stress Disorder, Secondhand Trauma, Reactive Attachment Disorder, Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder, Adjustment Disorder, and Other Unspecified Trauma. Each of which contains different criteria to be diagnosed. Keep in mind that being startled or surprised does not necessarily mean you have PTSD so please be careful with self-diagnosis and using the term wrong.

Oh, but wait! There is more to trauma! We can also categorize trauma into two subcategories. There are what is known as small “t” and large “T” traumas.

“Wow, how interesting! Trauma is more complex than I thought!” Yes, Reader, trauma is very complex, and we have just begun to understand the surface of it!

Small “t” traumas are often less invasive. They are often not life threatening but still have an impact on our mental health by disrupting our way of coping with life stressors. Examples of small “t” traumas can be a divorce, a sudden life change, getting fired from a job and even getting bullied.

Large “T” traumas are often more impactful and invasive. Examples of large “T” traumas are being shot at, being in a car crash, loss of housing situations, and physical or mental abuse.

Trauma can impact one’s daily life to the point that the person might irrationally react to a situation. This is known as a trauma response. Most common trauma responses fall under four categories, 1) Fight 2) Flight 3) Freeze or 4) Fawn. Those that have not experienced the impact of trauma might not understand fully how invasive these trauma responses can be. There are also professionals out there that are not informed with how to treat trauma. Therefore, if you are seeking out professional help, be sure to ask if they are a trauma informed therapist.

“If I have been traumatized, what can I do about it?”

Again, a very good question, Reader!

Working through trauma is not easy and can be very time consuming. Trauma tends to distort our thoughts and beliefs about ourselves and those around us. It is important to reach out to a professional and explore cognitive distortions, do parts work, build healthy coping skills, understand your triggers, build stress tolerance skills, surround yourself with a healthy social supportive system and build healthy beliefs and habits.

"That is a lot of work, Jon.”

Yes, it is definitely a lot of work but remember in a previous blog, work is just a part of life that we need to practice accepting. Once we accept that we have to put in the work, we can influence healthy change. The important part is that you do not have to go through this alone. Some useful modalities to treat trauma are EMDR, group therapy, EFT, Matrix Re-imprinting, IFS. DBT can be helpful for managing strong feelings and emotions. CBT can also be useful to understand distorted thought patterns. Even ACT can be helpful in order to practice being comfortable with the uncomfortableness and understanding one’s values. Each of these modalities will help build skills to manage and cope with trauma and trauma responses. One modality is not an end all fix all. We can’t get rid of trauma completely just as we can’t change the past. (Unless you have a time machine and if you do, let me use it too!) BUT we can change the relationship we have with the past.

All in all, trauma work is a collaboration and a process of building healthy skills and beliefs about yourself and those around you. Be sure to work with a professional that you trust as you begin to work through your own traumas.

Wow, that was a lot! I probably should pause there. Here are today’s takeaways!

Takeaways:

1)      Trauma is complex and often distorts one’s thoughts and beliefs.

2)      There are several categories and subcategories of trauma.

3)      Trauma responses are often irrational responses to a situation that contribute to the individual being misunderstood.

4)      Many modalities teach skills to work through trauma. (Not get rid of, but to work through...unless you have a time machine).

5)      Seek out professional help and someone you trust when working on your own trauma.