If you've been abused, please know you are not alone.
If you are in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention hotline at 1-800-273-8255, or the Crisis hotline at 988.
What Is Trauma?
Trauma is our physical and emotional response to toxic stress. There is no way to compare a single trauma to anyone else’s, or imagine what it’s like to be in anyone else’s shoes, because every human is unique, and everyone’s response to trauma is different.
Some common responses to trauma are fight, flight, freeze, fawn, and flop. As science advances, so does our understanding of trauma. For example, we are expecting to drop the “D” from “PTSD” (post-traumatic stress disorder) in the not-so-distant future. We now know that our reactions to trauma, such as PTSD, hypervigilance and disassociating, can actually be life-saving.
Trauma can manifest as overwhelm, intense feelings of things seeming out of control, feeling helpless, and even change the way we view the world and ourselves. Trauma often occurs in toxic power environments. It is most debilitating when we experience a real or perceived threat alone.
The amygdala sends signals to the hypothalamus, triggering emotional responses. Our amygdala shrinks and grows depending on the state of our nervous system, and is at its smallest when our environment feels safe, controlled, and predictable. When we feel threatened, our amygdala enlarges, and our prefrontal cortex (the part of our brain that allows us to concentrate, analyze, organize and multitask) shrinks. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to function while our nervous system is in a prolonged heightened state. Our brains are like plastic: with therapy and proper self care, we can regulate our nervous system, and bring our amygdala and prefrontal cortex back to its normal, functioning state. We call this state the “resiliency zone”.
Healing occurs when power is restored to the survivor. When a victim is silenced and disbelieved, the impacts of their trauma increases. It is so important that we believe, validate and support our friends who are survivors. Nurturing and establishing trust with a survivor, and allowing them to “steer the ship”, can save their day, career, or even their life.
Some common responses to trauma are fight, flight, freeze, fawn, and flop. As science advances, so does our understanding of trauma. For example, we are expecting to drop the “D” from “PTSD” (post-traumatic stress disorder) in the not-so-distant future. We now know that our reactions to trauma, such as PTSD, hypervigilance and disassociating, can actually be life-saving.
Trauma can manifest as overwhelm, intense feelings of things seeming out of control, feeling helpless, and even change the way we view the world and ourselves. Trauma often occurs in toxic power environments. It is most debilitating when we experience a real or perceived threat alone.
The amygdala sends signals to the hypothalamus, triggering emotional responses. Our amygdala shrinks and grows depending on the state of our nervous system, and is at its smallest when our environment feels safe, controlled, and predictable. When we feel threatened, our amygdala enlarges, and our prefrontal cortex (the part of our brain that allows us to concentrate, analyze, organize and multitask) shrinks. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to function while our nervous system is in a prolonged heightened state. Our brains are like plastic: with therapy and proper self care, we can regulate our nervous system, and bring our amygdala and prefrontal cortex back to its normal, functioning state. We call this state the “resiliency zone”.
Healing occurs when power is restored to the survivor. When a victim is silenced and disbelieved, the impacts of their trauma increases. It is so important that we believe, validate and support our friends who are survivors. Nurturing and establishing trust with a survivor, and allowing them to “steer the ship”, can save their day, career, or even their life.
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Resources:
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk Trauma and Recovery by Judith Herman Meant For More by Mia Hewitt Echo (Center for Nonviolent Education) - www.echotraining.org |
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