What is Trauma and how does it look?

Trauma is an overwhelming event or a series of overwhelming events that a person or a community experiences beyond their capacity to cope. It is either real or perceived as potentially life threatening or challenges the integrity of the self. This encounter overwhelms the body, the mind and the spirit. Statistics suggest that 50% of individuals experience some form of trauma in any given year and to varying degrees it could be said that trauma affects everybody at some stage of life and can be overwhelming and unmanageable. The effects of trauma can be huge on the individual, couples and families and can vary from person to person, family to family however there are some general themes. Traumatic presentations include anxiety, depression, anger, intrusive memories, nightmares and behaviours to avoid these responses such as addiction to drugs and alcohol, gambling, sex and many more...

Trauma is different from stress. Stress is an important part of the human condition that serves to motivate and drive change and build resilience. Too much stress though is unhelpful and if we are struggling with managing it at any given point in time having support and assistance can help.