Understanding Trauma Event Vs Trauma Response

 


What is a Trauma event(s)

A traumatic event is an incident that causes physical, emotional, spiritual, or psychological harm. It is an event that leave a person feeling threatened, frightened, or overwhelmed. Examples include accidents, natural disasters, violence, abuse, or witnessing a distressing event. It is triggers the human Fight or Flight which response to the maximum that often leaves a person stuck int fight, flight or freeze mode, this can trigger the trauma response system (TRS).

What is a Trauma Response?

Trauma responses refer to the psychological, emotional, and physical reactions individuals may experience after encountering a traumatic event. This is a human defense system! The trauma response system (TRS) allows humans to survive horrible event(s) including accidents, abuse, violence, loss, natural disasters and long term trauma exposure.

Once your trauma response system is activated it can fail to stop protecting you long after the trauma event(s) are done. We use the terms traumatized, PTSD, and CPTSD, and to explain this trauma response stuck on position. Understanding how trauma affects you is the first step toward healing and recovery.

Key Points to Remember

1. The Trauma Response System is Not Trying to Hurt You:

  • The TRS is still trying to protect you from more trauma.

  • The TRS is an Automatic response system that can be controlled.

2. Common Reactions From the Trauma Response System:

  • Emotional Symptoms: Feelings of fear, anger, sadness, anxiety, or numbness. Many time mixed emotions are felt all at once!

  • Cognitive Symptoms: Extreme cautious thoughts, hyper-awareness or here and now only focus causing memory losses.

  • Physical Symptoms: light Sleep modes, physical withdrawal, or somatic illnesses.

  • Behavioral Symptoms: Social withdrawal, substance seeking, or appetite increase or decrease.

2. The Impact of Trauma on Daily Life

Having a always on Trauma response system can disrupt almost every part of your daily functioning from relationships, work, to self-esteem and mental health isseus. Recognizing these impacts can help in finding strategies to shutting off the TRS and turning on self controlled reactions and choices.

3. Reframing Negative Thoughts from TRS

Reframing is a cognitive-behavioral technique that involves shifting your perspective on a negative thought or reaction to foster a more positive outlook.

Here’s how to reframe negative thoughts:

  • Identify Negative Thoughts or reaction: Notice when you’re having a negative thought related to fear, anxiety, or similar to your trauma event feelings.

  • Challenge the Thought: Ask yourself questions like:

    • Is this thought based on facts or past feelings and experiences?

    • What would I say to a friend who is having this thought/response?

  • Reframe the Thought: Create a chosen balanced or positive thought. For example:

    • TRS thought: “I need to be afraid of new social gatherings.”

    • Reframed Thought: “It’s normal to feel afraid after what I’ve experienced and it was valid back then, but I am safe now and I can choose to engage in a safe way.”

    • TRS thought - “You can't trust others!”

    • Reframed Thought: “It is hard to trust others after what I experienced and that was a valid thought then but I can keep myself safe as I let others into my life slowly and build trust, while sttaying safe.

4. Learn to Hear Your Voice

  • The TRS voice becomes a safe reaction system that we trust but like an over protective parent it can stop us from enjoying and living to our potential.

  • Learning to here your voice of a strong, powerful, surviving adult is KEY.

  • Your voice has desires to do, be, live, experience, grow, and thrive.

  • Hear and follow your voice while recognizing the old validity of TRS and live free with a since of controlled safety!

Conclusion

Understanding trauma responses system is a human process is essential for healing. By recognizing your voice is strong and powerful in the now your and reframing trauma response system thoughts, you can take significant steps toward recovery.

Remember, it’s okay to seek help, and you are not alone in this journey.

Resources for Further SupportContact me @ Email – Therapistpaul@gmail.com

Books

  • “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk: Explores how trauma affects the body and mind, offering insights into healing.

  • “Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma” by Peter A. Levine: Focuses on understanding trauma and integrating it into the healing process.

Location: 9Q7F+H9 Lake City, MI, USA

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