THE IMPACT OF EMOTIONAL TRAUMA
Emotional Trauma
The term trauma typically calls to mind major events that cause physical damage, such as a
serious accident, violent attack, or natural disaster. More and more though, people have
come to recognize the emotional impact of these types of events, which is known as emotional
trauma. Research also validates that emotionally painful experiences that occur without
physical damage also fit the criteria for emotional trauma. Examples include abuse, neglect,
humiliation, relationship breakup, or the death of a loved one.
Trauma vs. Stress
As a point of reference, emotional trauma can be compared to stress. Both trauma and stress
are a normal reaction to an abnormal situation and they both cause your nervous system to
prepare to take action through the "fight or flight" response.
With stressful situations, your nervous system is briefly impacted, but naturally returns
to balance within a relatively short period of time. A traumatic experience, on the other
hand, is more extreme in that it overwhelms your capacity to cope with a given situation,
causing your nervous system to be thrown out of balance. If this trauma-induced imbalance
is not resolved, it lingers. This is what accounts for the ongoing after-effects of
trauma, such as anxiety and depression,
panic attacks and fearfulness, sleep disturbances, and
relationship problems.
Sensitivity to Trauma
Various factors cause some people to be more susceptible to the after-effects of trauma
than others. Since younger children are more vulnerable and less able to understand
disturbing events, trauma often impacts them more severely. If you have a shy or sensitive
temperament, you may be impacted by, and react more strongly to, traumatic experiences
(some people are genetically less resilient to trauma than others). Also, traumatic
experiences that occur earlier in your life tend to make you more vulnerable to future
traumas. This often results in greater sensitivity and more severe reactions to
subsequent trauma.
Single Incident vs. Chronic Trauma
Traumatic experiences can occur as a single incident or may have been a chronic
experience. Single incident traumas include situations such as a car accident,
experiencing (or witnessing) an assault, domestic violence, or some type of abuse.
Chronic trauma manifests as a repetitive experience or pattern. Examples include
chronic criticism or ongoing rejection, abandonment, or neglect by a parent or
caretaker.
Repetitive Nature of Trauma
Often times, unbeknownst to you, early traumas tend to get repeated in similar ways
later in life. This is especially true of more subtle, forgotten, or repetitive traumas
that are less obvious. For example, you may have had the experience of reacting very
strongly to a difficult circumstance - such as a relationship breakup or the way a
co-worker treats you - but not understanding why. In these cases, there typically is
a childhood trauma that is getting activated and fueling your current reaction.
Subjective Nature of Trauma
A traumatic reaction is a completely subjective experience - different people interpret and
react to the same types of situations very differently. It is not the incident that
determines whether something is traumatic to you or not, but rather your personal
experience of it. For example, two people can go through a similarly painful relationship
breakup at the same time. Six months later, one of them may be happy in a new relationship,
while the other is stuck feeling rejected, worthless, and depressed. This person likely
suffered a similar type of emotional trauma at a younger age (such as rejection by a parent)
that is unresolved and being re-activated.
Trauma and Negative Beliefs
Traumatic experiences strongly influence your perceptions about yourself and your life.
When a person goes through a traumatic situation, they make meaning out of the experience.
In this way, traumatic experiences both create and reinforce negative beliefs.
For example, if a parent is verbally or physically abusive to their child, he or she
may develop the belief, "I'm not safe." If a parent ignores their child, he or she may
conclude, "I'm not lovable." Powerful beliefs such as these are often an underlying
source of anxiety, depression, and many other types of symptoms.
Trauma as a Source of Symptoms
Current research indicates that trauma may be at the root of a broad spectrum of
problems. When trauma goes untreated, it can impact all aspects of a person,
manifesting as a variety of different symptoms that may obviously, or not so obviously,
relate to the initial trauma.
Physical Symptoms
Trauma impacts the physical body by decreasing a sense of trust and safety, which
increases fear and worry. Common symptoms include a racing heart, hyper-vigilance,
exaggerated startle response, sleep difficulties, headaches, increased stress, change
in appetite, low energy, and sexual dysfunction. Research also links trauma with
physical health problems.
Emotional Symptoms
Trauma is at the root of some very painful symptoms, including anxiety,
fearfulness, phobias, worry, and panic attacks. Depression, hopelessness,
excessive guilt, and shame are very common. Feeling trapped, powerless, and
inadequate, as well as struggling to overcome grief is also typically related to
emotional trauma.
Cognitive Symptoms
Trauma plays a major role in shaping your belief system and typically underlies
self-sabotaging thinking. It's not uncommon to also experience difficulties with
concentration, memory, decision making, and being easily distracted due to
emotional trauma.
Behavioral Problems
Due to the discomfort of trauma, many people feel a strong attraction to
mask or avoid their symptoms through addictive and compulsive behaviors, with
alcohol, drugs, food, sex, gambling, and relationships.
Relationship Issues
Trauma typically occurs within the context of relationships
(e.g., abuse, rejection, abandonment, humiliation, criticism) and these issues
often get repeated, triggered, or played out in intimate relationships.
Common symptoms include arguments, conflict, and hostility; isolation and
withdrawal; sexual problems, extreme fear of abandonment and rejection,
and attempts to control others.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
PTSD is an anxiety disorder that develops after a traumatic event in which
death, injury, or physical harm was threatened or occurred. During the
traumatic incident, the person experiences intense fear, a sense of helplessness,
or horror. People suffering from PTSD may startle easily, experience emotional
numbing and loss of interest in significant activities, and struggle with insomnia,
hypervigilance, flashbacks, and nightmares. PTSD often co-occurs with anxiety,
depression, and substance abuse and can be the source of painful relationship
problems.
Spirituality
When unresolved traumas are continually triggered, they pull your attention to the
past, making it difficult to be present-centered. Likewise, painful trauma makes
it challenging to fully accept life just as it is. Emotional trauma naturally increases
fear, leading to a more outwardly focused orientation, leaving less energy for inner
connection with your true nature. Trauma symptoms may keep you identified with your
personal pain, making it more difficult to relate to the interconnectedness of all
things and to stay focused on your greater life purpose.
Trauma Counseling
Experiencing trauma clearly has its disadvantages, but healing trauma
can open you up to deep transformation and personal growth. As your
trauma heals, it's not uncommon to experience a deeper sense of compassion,
empathy, and intimacy in your relationships. You may also experience a greater
sense of wisdom, acceptance, and appreciation for life. Healing emotional trauma
is especially powerful because it impacts all aspects of your personhood - physical,
emotional, cognitive, behavioral, relationships, and spirituality. Fortunately,
there are powerful counseling approaches to addressing trauma, such as EMDR and
The Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy (DNMS).
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