Trauma involves experiencing a deeply distressing, frightening or stressful event, or series of events, over which we have little control.
Examples of traumatic experiences include:
- being the victim of crime, especially violent crime
- child abuse
- sexual assault
- traffic accidents
- war
- natural disasters such as earthquakes or tsunamis
- witnessing or experiencing violence
A one-off event can be traumatic, as can repeated incidents over a long time. What is traumatic to one person might not be to another. Anyone can experience trauma, regardless of age, gender or culture.
It’s not the objective facts that determine whether an experience is traumatic, but the subjective emotional response of the person experiencing the event.
The symptoms of trauma can begin immediately following a traumatic experience or may surface much later. It can be very unsettling and confusing to suddenly experience symptoms years after the trauma.
What happens to us following traumatic experiences?
Traumatic experiences can leave us feeling overwhelmed, confused and afraid. In a state of trauma, our bodies can respond in ways they didn’t before. This can be unsettling and very frightening.
The symptoms of trauma include:
- rage
- flashbacks
- anxiety
- depression
- nightmares or insomnia
- panic attacks
- disturbing thoughts
- emotional detachment.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may be diagnosed if symptoms are intense, sustained and affecting daily functioning. Most people who experience trauma don’t go on to suffer from PTSD.
Trauma counselling can help
Some trauma survivors feel they have lost their sense of security. The world may feel more frightening or more dangerous than it did before. They may have problems trusting themselves or others and they may feel unsafe even in places that felt safe before.
Counselling can help untangle the complex emotions that trauma survivors often describe and help them to feel safe in the world again.
For many survivors, the thought of therapy can be daunting. They may fear that discussing their trauma will be like reliving the original experience, or that it might trigger feelings they have been keeping at bay.
Our competent, experienced therapists support trauma survivors with great care and compassion. We don’t push our clients to discuss anything they are not ready to. We facilitate a process that helps restore a sense of safety and control in the trauma survivor’s life.
If you think that could be helpful, book an initial consultation or contact us to start the process.
Meet our therapists working with trauma
