Introducing Trauma
- lourdes Ibarra
- Apr 20
- 2 min read
What is trauma? As you read this question, the odds are that you might have your own experience already with trauma, or you will run into an event at some point in your lifetime. Studies show that 70% of the US will have experienced some traumatic event at least once in their lives, and over 90 percent of behavioral health clients have experienced trauma (thenationalcounsil.org, 2023). Even though people may experience trauma, they might not have the words to define their experience or even know how to treat it.
Dr. Shapiro (EMDR therapy creator) defines two types of traumas—Large T and small T. Large T refers to significant events such as hurricanes, explosions, fires, sexual abuse, and 9/11 attacks. Conversely, small t refers to more subtle events that impact a person's beliefs that can affect their sense of self.
Dr. Shapiro defines trauma as the brain's natural process being disrupted, "when a trauma occurs that is too large for your system to adequately process, it can become 'stuck' in the central nervous system. Maladaptive responses, such as flashbacks or dreams, can be triggered by present stimuli, and there may be attempts of the information processing system to resolve the trauma "(Springer Publishing Connect, 2023). In other words, a person experiencing trauma might struggle with symptoms such as repeated images, nightmares, and thoughts-- because the brain is attempting to process the information, and that is why it brings it over and over to make sense of it. We work through these stuck places with people in therapy by facilitating those neuro pathways.
Some recognized therapy treatments for trauma include EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) and IFS (Internal Family Systems).
References:
Connect.springerpub.com. (2023). When trauma happes. Refer to:
The National Council. (2023). How to Manage Trauma. Refer to: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Trauma-infographic.pdf
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