Trauma: Trained for Triumph or Terror?
In the wake of our recent election, this topic could not be more appropriate. The American Psychological Association (APA) released a statement speaking to the Trauma that our Nation has experienced.
As a provider, I have seen this play out in various forms:
Sleep disruption
Hypervigilance when going in public
A rush of emotions aka triggered after seeing a red hat associating it with the MAGA hat.
Difficulty concentrating and completing tasks. This can be impactful when it comes to school and work and economically too if one loses their job as a result of performance problems.
Fear of white people- yes.
Increased fear over loved ones and implementing safety check-in systems.
Increased rates of Anxiety particularly during the week of election results.
These experiences are fairly relatable at this time however, other trauma responses can be very much alive and showing UP in one's life without even knowing it.
Trauma Responses
The Brain
Brainstem- The oldest part of the brain that's responsible for taking in information, responsible for rest and digest. If one is impacted by Trauma, the ability to feel at ease and enter into a rest and digest state is impacted.
Amygdala-Responsible for detecting threat
Hippocampus- Processing and storing of memories
Pre-frontal cortex-Creates meaning and reasoning
For a Visual and further description, check out the video by Dr. Dan Siegel.
Physiological
1) FREEZE
You ever see those scary movies and find yourself yelling at a character “RUNNNNNN!!!!” even finding yourself frustrated asking why in the world didn’t they win? The answer-they froze and were immobilized by fear/threat. And as we’ve seen in movies, that response doesn’t fair so positive. Physical manifestations when experiencing distressed as noted on the Trauma Recovery Website may include:
Feeling stuck in some part of the body
Feeling cold, numb, pale skin
Sense of stiffness, heaviness
Holding/restricted breathing
Sense of dread, heart-pounding
Decreased heart rate (can sometimes increase)
Orientation to threat
2) Flight
We will keep using this example of scary movies. Let’s say the movie Scream! Thinking about our main protagonist, Sidney there were times that she cried, but homegirl ran! Physical manifestations when experiencing distressed as noted on the Trauma Recovery Website may include:
Restless legs, feet /numbness in the legs
Anxiety/shallow breathing
Big/darting eyes
Leg/foot movement
Reported or observed fidgety-ness, restlessness, feeling trapped, tense
Sense of running in life- one activity next
Excessive exercise
3) Fight
If you followed this movie or other movies say one of my all-time favorites Die Hard. Bruce Willis never hid, throughout the movie, he was strategizing, but he was always fighting. He was always moving. The key here is to MOVE. This response is the opposite of immobilization. Studies show and like the acclaimed Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma book states, the key to moving past trauma is to move. Physical manifestations when experiencing distressed as noted on the Trauma Recovery Website may include:
Crying
Hands in fists, desire to punch, rip
Flexed/tight jaw, grinding teeth, snarl
Fight in eyes, glaring, fight in voice
Desire to stomp, kick, smash with legs, feet
Feelings of anger/rage
Homicidal/suicidal feelings
Knotted stomach/nausea, burning stomach
Metaphors like bombs, volcanoes erupting
Pathway to Healing
I want to stress that being a SURVIVOR of trauma is not a death sentence. You view the world and distressing experiences from a mental filter. Retraining and repairing the brain is possible.
1. HONOR YOUR PROCESS
There are phase and stages to all this. Pacing is important, don’t feel rushed to get to a finish line. Healing is a process, not finite-be patient with yourself.
2. KNOW YOURSELF
Understand your triggers. The more you know what they are, and how they show up, the more you can address the how-how to respond to them differently.
Understand your trigger responses. “Create a container” aka AMP UP on some self-soothing skills as you move towards healing. Before going on the deep end of re-visiting closed doors, stabilization is necessary. Going back to the brain, if you are actively triggered and flooded with emotions, the part of the brain that’s responsible for creating meaning (pre-frontal cortex) is offline.
3. SEEK SUPPORT.
You DON’T have to do this alone.