What Is Trauma?
The word “trauma” has its roots in the Greek word for “wound”.
Bonnie Badenoch (2018) in Widen the Window defined trauma as a rupture in the continuous integration of your on-going experience.
Peter Levine (2008) in Healing Trauma observed that you become traumatised when your ability to respond to a perceived threat is overwhelmed.
What these two definitions have in common is that they both refer to the disintegration of experience – that is to say, there are certain experiences you encounter that you are unable to metabolise.
When trauma is present there is a loss of connection with yourself, to your body, your family, the world around you and with life itself.
Trauma can happen in an instant or can be patterns of behaviour that build up over time.
How do I know if I have trauma?
“Trauma” is word that covers a lot of ground.
Every person on this Earth (yes everyone, including you and me!) has trauma of some kind. Its formation is a natural part of living a human life.
So the question is not really “How do I know if I have trauma?”, it’s more like “How much do my trauma responses impact me?”
This second question is more powerful, but it is also more complex.
This is because most people mistakenly believe that their trauma symptoms are their personalities.
Whilst there are events you experience that change you, these changes are not permanent.
Whatever your nervous system has learned can be unlearned. Trauma is not a death sentence.
Certainly some people carry more trauma than others.
This is because trauma sensitivity is the result of a complex interrelationship between circumstances, physiology, epigenetics, personality and upbringing.
This is why not everyone is impacted by life in the same way; some people will show the signs of trauma after certain events and others will not.
Being impacted by trauma is not a sign of weakness – in fact there is a mistaken belief in society (and many workplaces like the military and police force) that people who become traumatised are “broken biscuits” – this is a toxic belief that causes great pain and has a distorted picture of human nature its core.
Trauma responses are the normal reactions of a healthy nervous system to overwhelming and/ or perceived life-threatening circumstances. These responses can be changed.
Very few people know exactly the boundaries of their trauma – it tends to be known by its signs and symptoms. Founder of the trauma modality Somatic Experiencing (which we offer at The Canberra Trauma and Well-Being Centre), Peter Levine in Healing Trauma (2008:17-19) compiled a list of trauma signs and symptoms. It’s important to know that some of these symptoms may not show up until years after the events that sit at their root:
• Hypervigilance (being “on guard” all the time)
• Intrusive imagery/ flashbacks
• Extreme sensitivity to light and sound
• Exaggerated emotional and startle responses
• Nightmares and night terrors
• Abrupt mood swings (which can include rage, temper tantrums, frequent anger, or crying)
• Shame and lack of self-worth
• Reduced ability to deal with stress
• Difficulty sleeping
• Panic attacks, anxiety and phobias
• Mental “blankness” or “spaced-out” feelings
• Avoidance behaviour (including places, activities, movements, memories or people)
• Attraction to dangerous situations
• Addictive behaviours (overeating, drinking, smoking, etc)
• Exaggerated or diminished sexual activity
• Amnesia and forgetfulness
• Inability to love, nurture, or bond with other individuals
• Fear of dying or having a shortened life
• Self-mutilation (severe abuse, self-inflicted cutting etc.)
• Loss of sustaining beliefs (spiritual, interpersonal, religious)
• Excessive shyness
• Diminished emotional responses
• Inability to make emotional commitments
• Chronic fatigue or very low physical energy
• Immune system problems and certain endocrine problems such as thyroid malfunction and environmental sensitivities
• Psychosomatic illness, particularly chronic and intermittent pain without medical explanation including headaches, migraines, neck and back problems
• Fibromyalgia
• Asthma
• Skin disorders
• Digestive disorders such as spastic colon
• Severe premenstrual syndrome
• Depression and feelings of impending doom
• Feelings of detachment, alienation, and isolation (“living dead” feelings)
• Reduced ability to formulate plans
These signs may be constant or intermittent.
They may surface when triggered by stress.
Some of these signs can lay dormant for decades before surfacing.
Whatever the case, the signs and symptoms of trauma become more complex over time as they become less connected with the original traumatising experience.
Fortunately, we have a great track record of supporting our clients to metabolise their trauma and reboot their lives.
“Trauma victims cannot recover until they become familiar with and befriend the sensations in their bodies.
Being frightened means that you live in a body that is always on guard.
Angry people live in angry bodies.
The bodies of child-abuse victims are tense and defensive until they find a way to relax and feel safe.
In order to change, people need to become aware of their sensations and the way that their bodies interact with the world around them.
Physical self-awareness is the first step in releasing the tyranny of the past.
In my practice I begin the process by helping my patients to first notice and then describe the feelings in their bodies—not emotions such as anger or anxiety or fear but the physical sensations beneath the emotions: pressure, heat, muscular tension, tingling, caving in, feeling hollow, and so on.
I also work on identifying the sensations associated with relaxation or pleasure.
I help them become aware of their breath, their gestures and movements.
All too often, however, drugs such as Abilify, Zyprexa, and Seroquel, are prescribed instead of teaching people the skills to deal with such distressing physical reactions.
Of course, medications only blunt sensations and do nothing to resolve them or transform them from toxic agents into allies.
The mind needs to be reeducated to feel physical sensations, and the body needs to be helped to tolerate and enjoy the comforts of touch.
Individuals who lack emotional awareness are able, with practice, to connect their physical sensations to psychological events.
Then they can slowly reconnect with themselves.”
- Bessel A. van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
Trauma Isn’t Your Fault, but it is your responsibility to work through it.
"Trauma is personal.
It does not disappear if it is not validated.
When it is ignored or invalidated the silent screams continue internally heard only by the one held captive.
When someone enters the pain and hears the screams healing can begin.”
— Danielle Bernock, Emerging With Wings: A True Story of Lies, Pain, And The LOVE that Heals