Where does TRAUMA come from?

Exploring traumatic experiences

Where does Trauma come from? This question seems like a fair place to begin our discussion and enquiry into understanding what trauma is. Sometimes we wonder what constitutes trauma and where does it emanate from? Other times we wonder - am I traumatised? How can I deal with my personal trauma if I have any?

But what actually is trauma?

A simple way I like to explain the concept of trauma is from a definition given by SAMSHA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration). It says:

“Trauma results from an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual's functioning and physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being.”

If you read the above definition again, you will notice that it has three parts:

1. Something happened,

2. The child or adult perceived it as a threat or danger to him/her, and

3. There are lasting negative effects after an event

.

So the deal is in life, we have all had experiences that have resulted in physical, emotional, and/or life-threatening harm which has impacted our mental, physical, emotional, social, and/or spiritual well-being.

Trauma violates a person’s sense of safety and security, leaving them in fear, unable to manage their emotions.

Age, gender, social class, colour, ethnicity, or sexual orientation are not factors that determine how someone is affected by trauma. Adults and children alike frequently encounter trauma in today's world.

So back to the question, where does trauma come from?

The simple answer is one’s experiences. From events, sets of events or circumstances we encounter. And a good place to begin to look is your childhood. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) constitute negative and threatening experiences that children are exposed to. This can be in the form of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional); neglect (emotional, physical); household challenges (a family member experiencing: domestic abuse, mental illness, imprisonment, divorce, constant chance of carer, etc) or in the forms of poverty, war & crisis, school invasions, kidnappings, loss of livelihood, etc. All of these experiences in childhood impact their mental, physical, emotional, social, and/or spiritual well-being, thereby changing the way children behave. Even for adults, these events can have significant negative effects on their mental health.

Traumatic events, particularly those that happen in childhood, have been linked in research to both behavioural health problems and chronic physical health disorders in later life. They have also been connected to substance abuse, mental health issues, and other dangerous and risky behaviours. Understanding the nature and effects of trauma as well as exploring healing is crucial since these behavioural health issues can pose difficulties in interpersonal relationships, professions, and other facets of life.

Traumatic events have a significant negative impact on people, families, and communities. While some survivors of traumatic events go on with their life without experiencing any long-term harm, many will struggle and develop traumatic stress reactions. A person's reaction to a traumatic event is unique to them. This also means that what may constitute trauma to one person may not be traumatic to another. A traumatic event might not have an impact on the person's mental health if there is a strong support system for them in place, or there have been few or no prior traumatic events, and the person possesses numerous resilient traits.

Additionally, a traumatic experience may result from a single event or series of events, which may be mild, moderate or severe depending on its impact.

If you or someone you know have had experiences that have become traumatic and affected their functioning, it is important to note that healing is possible. Avoiding these emotions will not help, it is only prolonging the journey. Finding help from a mental health professional to guide you into safely exploring, feeling and processing these experiences will set you on the path toward being healed and free.

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