When you hear the word “trauma,” what arises in your mind and body?

 

Do you feel a sense of heaviness, tension, or maybe even nausea? Do you think of war, an accident, abuse, or perhaps a natural disaster? Surely, these can be traumatic, but...

 

 

 

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Trauma is not defined by the type of event that occurs but by how your nervous system is impacted. Regardless of how big or small an incident is, anything that overwhelms, shocks, or disturbs your nervous system and sense of safety beyond your capacity to cope is deemed traumatic.  Anything or anyone that is either too much (e.g., an intrusive parent), or occurs too soon (e.g., sexual experiences), too fast (e.g., losing a job or loved one unexpectedly), or is not enough for too long (e.g., poverty, neglect, unmet emotional needs) can affect how we live in our bodies,  manage our emotions, and navigate relationships.

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Here are some examples:

Being humiliated by a peer. Consistently feeling criticized, unheard, unseen, or dismissed in your family. Your parent forgetting to pick you up at school. A medical procedure. Divorce or a painful breakup.  Facing microaggressions as a person of color. Being undervalued as a woman in a male-dominated workplace. Anything your nervous system registers as a threat to your well-being.

 

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder:

While shock and overwhelm are normal responses to disturbing events, when neither the sensations connected to the trauma are “digested,” nor the meanings made about the event fully processed, our nervous system can remain stuck in fight, flight, freeze survival mode, reacting as if the trauma is still happening. When PTSD develops, it is as if part of us remains trapped in time.