Trauma is a profound and often intricate aspect of the human experience that can shape the course of one’s life. While the term is commonly used, defining trauma requires delving into its multifaceted nature, encompassing a range of emotional, psychological, and physical responses to distressing events. In this blog, we navigate the layers of trauma to gain a deeper understanding of what it is and how it manifests in various aspects of an individual’s life.

Defining Trauma:

Trauma is generally defined as the emotional, psychological, or physical response to an event or series of events that are distressing, disturbing, or harmful. These events are generally out of a person’s control and overwhelm an individual’s ability to cope, leaving a lasting impact on their mental, emotional, and sometimes physical well-being. A traumatic event can be one singular stressful event, or it can be something that occurs over a long period of time.

Most of us will experience some form of trauma over the course of our lives.  Trauma can manifest in diverse forms, and its effects may linger long after the triggering events have occurred.  The reactions to a traumatic event may even show up quite a while after the traumatic event, even if the person appears to cope with it well at the time it originally occurred.  And even though it may seem like the reactions caused by trauma are out of alignment with what is considered “normal,” trauma reactions are normal experiences to an abnormal situation.

Key Aspects of Trauma:

1. Subjective Nature:  While the event itself is objective, trauma is inherently subjective, as what may be distressing for one person might not be for another. Each individual processes and reacts to events based on their unique experiences, histories, vulnerabilities, and coping mechanisms.  It’s important to recognize this subjectivity to validate the person’s individual experience and to respond in a trauma-informed manner.
2. Overwhelming Stress Response:  Trauma triggers an overwhelming stress response that surpasses the individual’s ability to cope effectively. This can lead to a range of emotional and physical reactions, including heightened anxiety, dissociation, or a sense of numbness.  The stress response may also include having doubts about what actually happened, questioning their own reality, difficulty connecting with others, having unpredictable feelings, and feeling disconnected from others and from the present moment.  Avoiding any reminders of the event, distressing memories, bad dreams and nightmares, and increased jumpiness is also common.  Panic attacks can often occur.
3. Impact on Core Beliefs:  Traumatic events can shatter an individual’s core beliefs about themselves, others, and the world. These events may challenge notions of safety, trust, and control, leaving a profound impact on the person’s worldview and how they interact within their world and with others.  This impact can affect their ability to connect with others due to this sense of lack of safety, increasing isolation away from others. Without their core beliefs to guide them, people who have experienced trauma may have difficulty understanding and interpreting what is happening around them, both within the world and in their relationships.
4. Intrusive Memories and Flashbacks:  Individuals who have experienced trauma may struggle with intrusive memories and flashbacks related to the traumatic event. These involuntary recollections can be distressing and disruptive to daily life as they are a reliving of the event as if it were taking place in the present moment.  These flashbacks can occur outside of any direct reminder of the event and can feel like they are coming out of nowhere.  Since trauma is stored in the body, emotional experiences that are similar to the emotions experienced during or after the trauma can also cause emotional flashbacks without direct understanding of where these experiences are coming from.
5. Alteration of Self-Perception:  Trauma can alter an individual’s self-perception. They may develop negative beliefs about themselves, feeling shame, guilt, or a pervasive sense of worthlessness as a result of the traumatic experience.  New negative beliefs about themselves can be formed due to not being able to prevent or stop the event, or the event can bring up negative beliefs that have already been present. These types of beliefs can include not feeling worthy, not being able to experience positive emotions again, or they are permanently damaged or changed in some way.
6. Impact on Relationships:  The effects of trauma often extend to interpersonal relationships. Survivors may struggle with trust, intimacy, and communication, leading to challenges in forming and maintaining connections with others.  They may begin to expect danger or betrayal in their relationships, may be confused about whether a relationship or person is safe anymore, or have increased difficulty with being vulnerable with others they trusted before the traumatic event.  Increased emotional reactivity can cause more frequent or intense arguing, increased defensiveness and irritability, and lack of interest in doing activities they used to enjoy with those they love.
7. Long-Term Consequences:  Trauma can have long-term consequences that extend beyond the immediate aftermath of the event. Individuals may experience ongoing mental health challenges, including anxiety disorders, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and other related conditions.  Individuals who have experienced trauma often turn to substances to cope and can engage in risky behaviors.  Self-harming and suicidal thoughts may also be another way they try to cope.

Types of Trauma:

1. Acute Trauma:  Acute trauma refers to a single, intense event, such as a car accident, natural disaster, or assault, that has an immediate and severe impact on an individual.
2. Chronic Trauma:  Chronic trauma involves prolonged exposure to distressing situations, often occurring within relationships or environments over an extended period. Examples include ongoing abuse, neglect, or witnessing abuse.  Long-term illnesses or negative or invasive medical experiences can also be traumatic.  Homelessness, hunger, financial deprivation, or being bullied are also forms of trauma.  Exposure to ongoing war or combat situations, terrorism, school violence, or community violence are other forms of long-term exposure to traumatic events.
3. Complex Trauma:  Complex trauma results from exposure to multiple traumatic events, particularly during formative years. This type of trauma can be invasive and often occurs within the context of relationships, such as childhood abuse or neglect.  Witnessing abuse in the family or being forced to work in the sex trade industry are also forms of complex trauma.
4. Secondary Trauma:  Secondary trauma, also known as vicarious trauma, occurs when individuals are exposed to the traumatic experiences of others, such as healthcare professionals, first responders, or individuals in helping professions.  It is a natural but distressing experience of working with people who have experienced trauma themselves.

Defining trauma is a nuanced task, as its impact is deeply personal and varies from person to person. By acknowledging the subjective nature of trauma and understanding its multifaceted aspects, we can approach this complex phenomenon with compassion, empathy, and a commitment to supporting individuals on their journey of healing. Recognizing the signs of trauma and fostering a culture of empathy can contribute to creating a more understanding and resilient society that addresses the far-reaching effects of distressing events on individuals’ lives.

Stacey Alvarez

Stacey Alvarez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #101176) with a physical practice in San Jose, California, and serving clients virtually throughout California.  Stacey has three college degrees in Psychology and one in Religious Studies.  She is an active member of several professional organizations, including the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) and California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT).  She specializes in the use of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and other humanistic approaches to treat adults, teens, couples, and families for issues related with trauma, abuse, anxiety, depression, and relational difficulties.