At the beginning of my therapy career, my passion was working with families. The family system is like a well-oiled machine; every person in the unit has a role and a purpose they play. You add a new person, the family functions differently; if a person leaves the home, the system changes yet again. If one person changes a behavior or their way of interacting with the rest of the unit, the entire system is affected. After several years of working with families, I’ve found myself becoming more interested in trauma work. I have witnessed in my own treatment of families how devastating this can be not just to the individual who experienced the trauma, but to the loved ones who care for that individual. In regards to mental health, trauma can range from significant events such as child sexual abuse or combat to a series of stressors such as bullying or repeated rejection from others. Within my increased work with individuals who have experienced trauma, I’ve gained a better understanding of how the brain processes these memories and how these memories can subconsciously affect our interaction with others and our perception of the world as adults. It can completely debilitate our ability to have meaningful relationships as well as find joy in life.
Throughout history, the brain was considered useless, a part of the body that was insignificant. Ancient Egyptians discarded it during the mummification process. Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, theorized that the heart was responsible for our ability to think and process information. We know now that the brain is much more valuable. Our brain is a complex network; each night when we sleep it processes information from our day, keeps information deemed as relevant and discards non-relevant information. At least this is one of the theories regarding what takes place in REM sleep.
However, when experiencing trauma, such as say, rape, the informational system within our brain becomes overloaded with too much stimuli. Ultimately, it “shuts down” as it goes into a flight or fight response. Without going into too much sciency nerd talk on how the brain processes information, memory can sometimes be improperly stored. Our brain will hold on to a memory exactly how it was experienced, unprocessed. These unprocessed memories are stored and can then become linked to present day stimuli. This can explain the reasons why a rape survivor may flinch at the loving touch of her husband; the perpetrator from her past may have rubbed her arm in a similar fashion, and this same touch from her caring spouse can trigger an unconscious memory of that touch, even though she may not be actively recalling the entire trauma at the time. This way of processing information is similar with other forms of trauma, with results being just as devastating; difficulties with interpersonal relationships, lack of trust in others, difficulties with sleep, and many more symptoms.
Trauma can have long term effects on an individual in many different ways. Long term child abuse, for example, can impair the development of the brain. Improper brain development results in cognitive impairment, mental health disorders, difficulties with language and academic performance. In addition, children who have experienced child abuse or neglect function in a constant state of anxiety and hypervigilance (Child Welfare Information Gateway). In regards to soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, PTSD was more likely if the soldiers experienced the following: longer deployment time, more severe combat exposure, more severe physical injury, traumatic brain injury, among other factors (www.ptsd.va.gov).
It is vital for individuals who have experienced trauma to seek professional help if they are experiencing difficulty managing day to day functioning and/or maintaining interpersonal relationships. There are a variety of treatment modalities that can assist individuals. Treatment modalities can differ according to the type of trauma the individual experienced.
Exposure therapies, such as Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) and Prolonged Exposure therapy (PE) are based on the concept that ongoing exposure to the trauma by means of developing a narrative (talking about the trauma, exploring the feelings and sensations related to the trauma) and/or exposing the individual to triggers related to the trauma (for example, a person may avoid bridges because they had a serious car accident on a bridge) can reduce symptoms related to the traumatic event.
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) is the only form of treatment that involves reprocessing a traumatic event. Traumatic memories are resolved through the use of bilateral stimulation while the individual recalls the memory of the event which would include images, emotions, and physical sensations related to the trauma.
There is hope for survivors of trauma. With the assistance of a trained professional, individuals can rest assured that they will have someone with them every step of the way to assist them in reducing symptoms that have made their lives more difficult.
For more information on what was discussed in this article, please click on the following links:
About Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE)
National Registry of Evidenced-Based Programs and Practices
Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect
Mental Health Effects of Serving in Afghanistan and Iraq