Many of us deal with the daily stressors of life– traffic, jobs we don’t like, family disputes, and general stress. However, those that experience events outside of the normal reactions of life are likely to have been classified as experiencing trauma. Trauma can cause changes in out lives and our significant relationships.
Healing from trauma can seem complex, especially if it is paired with a drug or alcohol addiction or other mental health disorder. However, at Gloria Rehab, we have hope that you can heal from trauma. Our trauma therapy utilizes common trauma informed care practices to help survivors process and grow from their experiences.
What is Trauma?
If you have suffered from a catastrophic life event, it is likely that you have suffered from sone form of psychological and emotional trauma. Trauma is defined as “an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape, or natural disaster.”
While each person’s definition of traumatic experiences varies, there are some common events that mental health professionals and psychological researchers have classified as traumatic.
What Classifies as Traumatic Events?
Trauma, and the events that cause it, is more common than you think.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that over 60% of people have experienced at least one traumatic event. However, out of those people, around 30% have experienced traumatic stress and events multiple times.
Traumatic memories and events may vary by person, but some of the most common types of traumatic events include:
- Bullying: often contributing to childhood trauma
- Community Violence: gang violence, a terrorist attack, becoming a refugee, homelessness, mass shootings, or living in a crime ridden neighborhood
- Natural Disasters: tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, fires
- Physical Trauma: being shot, stabbed, beaten, robbed/mugged, and other physical forms of violence
- Sexual Trauma: rape, sexual assault, prostitution, sex trafficking
- Intimate Partner Violence: emotional, sexual, or physical abuse by an intimate partner
- Medical Trauma: having a chronic illness, trauma during a medical procedure, mistreatment by a medical professional, receiving a devastating or terminal diagnosis
- Traumatic Grief: sudden death of a loved one, losing multiple loved ones at once, loved ones dying in a graphic manner, witnessing death
While traumatic events vary by person, they are often classified as acute, chronic, or complex.
Acute trauma is a single event while chronic trauma is a repeated or prolonged exposure to events. Complex trauma, however, is often the combination of multiple events in an acute or chronic way.
What Does Trauma Do To the Body and Mind?
Even after experiencing just one traumatic event, there will likely be changes to the body and brain. Depending on the type of trauma, the physical and emotional reactions will vary. However, seeking prompt mental health resources from a mental health professional can help.
Immediate Changes: These happen directly after the event by direct victims of the traumatic experience. These can include physical symptoms like headaches, nausea, bodily injury, nervous system changes, nightmares, fatigue, and insomnia. You are likely to feel numb physical symptoms for some time after you’ve experienced trauma.
Psychological Changes: Trauma can also cause a variety of psychological symptoms. Some of these happen immediately while others can happen weeks, months, or even years later. These can include negative emotions, mood swings, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, anger, fear, guilt, and depression.
Extensive trauma can lead to permanent changes in the brain. Some trauma survivors go on to develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. It is estimated that around 6% of the population had or currently suffers with PTSD.
Healing from Emotional and Psychological trauma
Healing is not linear, and often the healing journey will depend based on the types and amount of trauma you have.
Trauma can affect the way we interact with others, upset the body’s natural equilibrium and emotional balance, and can leave you hopeless, feeling disconnected from those around you.
At Gloria Rehab, we use only high quality sources with the latest evidence based research to help you process and treat your trauma. Some of the methods we use to treat trauma are:
- EMDR Therapy , or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing for reconnecting and re-evaluating difficult emotions.
- Support Group offerings for victims to relate to those who have experienced the same types of trauma.
- Professional Medical Advice to help you treat and address any medically abnormal events caused by trauma.
- Talk therapy to help you open up about trauma and address things like unsafe environment separation, commonly overlooked causes of trauma, and how to navigate moving forward.
Begin Healing From Trauma Today with Gloria Rehab
We know that trauma can change who you are as a person permanently. However, it shouldn’t have to. The more mental health resources you have access to, the better chances you have at recovery.
Whether you are dealing with trauma related to substance abuse, or other traumas and diagnoses, our team is here to help you recover.
Contact us today to begin your trauma healing journey today!
