There can be several different types of traumatic events such as experiencing natural disasters, unintentional accidents, acts of gross negligence, violence. There are also acute traumatic events that include a single incident (such as rape), chronic traumatic events which consist of continuous exposure to trauma (e.g., child abuse or bullying), and complex traumatic events caused by the exposure to several different traumatic experiences. You can also have trauma due to being closely related to and dealing with someone who has been through a traumatic experience; this is called secondary or vicarious trauma. Some people may even feel certain events such as childbirth or the death of a loved one to be traumatic even though others may not.
PTSD is a type of traumatic disorder. It is characterized by a number of intrusive, avoidant, negative thought, and reactive based symptoms. If the symptoms of trauma disorder or even acute trauma last for more than a month and start harming someone’s functioning, it could be PTSD.
Trauma affects the way you think, the way you behave, and the way you act around others. People with trauma have trouble focusing, remembering things, doing daily activities, trusting people, and experience other healthy function impairments. It can also impact your body and physical health, and cause stomach-aches and headaches, fatigue, and insomnia.
Anyone can have trauma after a certain event. It depends on the person, their past history, and how at-risk they are to traumatic disorders. Even if two people experience the exact same accident, it is possible that one person may develop trauma while the other doesn’t. Trauma is about a personal reaction to an event. A lack of a good support system also makes a huge difference and puts people at more risk of having trauma disorders.
It is important to be understanding and there to listen to someone who has been through a traumatic experience. Encouraging them to talk about and confront their trauma is crucial, especially through professional help. Keeping the experience bottled up inside is harmful to one’s processing of it. Reassure them that their symptoms are normal and that they must be kind to themselves. It is also helpful to create a routine to lessen the impact of the symptoms on daily life. Try to keep them away from additional stress and help them resolve other small stressful tasks. Additionally, don’t let them avoid things and people that remind them of the trauma, as this will also halt their processing and make them slowly avoid more and more places and people, cutting off important relationships, making it harder to heal.
