NEXT MONTH IS TRAUMA AWARENESS MONTH. Trauma can be a scary word that not many want to talk about or even acknowledge they have experienced. Talking and sharing about trauma can be uncomfortable and brings up memories, thoughts, and reminders that lead to feelings of hopelessness, fear, hurt, anger, sadness, rejection, loneliness, guilt, and shame. However, talking and sharing is how someone receives healing; otherwise, the wound from trauma bleeds into everyday life causing distress and a lack in functioning within oneself and with others.
Both forms need treatment, and the one that gets pushed aside the most is the psychological trauma.
If you look at it from the medical perspective, dealing with the trauma of injury will be painful; however, you know in the end the treatment for the pain will bring healing. If you have a broken bone a doctor needs to assess the injury and create a treatment plan to heal and fix the bone, which will eventually stop the pain. The pain will not disappear right away. It is there for some time, but the process of the healing of the bone is taking place. In the same way, when you treat the event that has caused the psychological pain, the wound will resurface, but the process of healing in the mind begins with bringing awareness and processing the effects the event has had on a person’s thoughts and emotions.
Trauma has multiple forms, and for many the global COVID-19 pandemic is one of those forms. Of course, a global pandemic is not the only type of experience that defines a trauma. In fact, there is not a standard criterion that defines what constitutes a traumatic experience. Trauma is an individual experience based on an individual response. Two people can experience the exact same situation but have a completely different reaction. The response is what leads to the post-trauma symptoms.
The similarity in response with all the individuals I have worked with is how they perceive and think about themselves, others, and the world after the event. After the event, an everyday situation can trigger an unhelpful thought that leads to an unhelpful emotion that influences an unhelpful behavior/ response. The person begins to believe that their thought is true based on the events of the trauma, and after telling themselves this thought habitually, they begin to believe it to be a fact.
For example, a person who has been sexually abused by a parent or caregiver may grow up to believe that every person is not safe, that no one can be trusted, and/or it is their fault the abuse happened. These thoughts can cause distress in public places, within their homes, and in their relationship with themselves and others. They may feel on guard and anxious when they are actually in a safe place because they perceive it as a threat after a person they trusted abused them.
How do you know if you have experienced a trauma and need treatment for processing and healing? Seek treatment if you have been exposed to, experienced, heard of, or witnessed a traumatic event that has damaged the way you think about yourself, other people, or the world, and if you have symptoms that intrude into your daily living such as (but not limited to) anxiety, depression, intrusive memories, or nightmares about the event; feeling on guard; avoiding places, people, or things that remind you of the event; or experiencing flashbacks, sleep disturbances, or negative feelings about yourself and/or an inability to feel pleasurable emotions.
If you are still unsure, then start by talking to someone. Make an appointment with your local counseling center for an assessment by a mental-health professional who will guide and assist you in treatment options. Trauma can only be healed by talking about it; the longer it is kept buried, the larger the pain will grow. It is time to dig out the pain and talk about what happened.
Holly R. Urbina, MA, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor at The Willow Center and can be reached at 419-720-5800. ✲
Trauma in the medical field is defined as a physical injury from a blunt force, while trauma in the psychological field is defined as the damage to a person’s mind as a result of one or more distressing events.
