Experiencing a traumatic event of any kind can be life-changing, and overcoming the effects of trauma can require time and care. But before you can decide if you need to tackle a trauma, you need to know whether you could indeed be suffering from its effects.
The body’s response
At the time of a traumatic event, our bodies are designed to react in any of five ways: fight, flight, freeze, flop, or fawn. The first three terms are self-explanatory, whilst “flop” refers to simply doing as told, and “fawn” describes acting in a way that is designed to appease an attacker. These are biological strategies built into our bodies to help us survive a threat to our safety, and happen automatically, without our minds having any control over this reaction.
The physical and mental effects of trauma can linger long after the immediate danger has passed. Common symptoms include difficulty sleeping, feeling unable to relax, or being constantly on the alert for danger (this is called hypervigilance). If you are interested in learning more about the clinical definition of trauma, you can find a useful explanation here.
Mental effects of trauma
You may experience flashbacks to the distressing event, panic attacks, or even feel numb to normal emotions or struggle to connect to the world (this is called disassociation). You may have feelings of depression or low self-esteem. It’s also common to feel grief, as you face the changes to your life that the experience has created. Some try to deal with these symptoms by turning to alcohol or drugs, which can in turn lead to serious health issues.
If you are experiencing any symptoms that you feel could be caused by having undergone trauma, then finding a therapist who has had trauma informed practice training from a specialist provider such as tidaltraining.co.uk/mental-health-training-courses/trauma-informed-practice-training can be an invaluable first step.
It’s important to realise that if you don’t feel right after any traumatic event, it’s best to get help as soon as possible, with someone who has had trauma informed practice training.