Psychological trauma, also known as mental injury or emotional injury, can be an emotional response to an acutely stressful event, such as physical injury, sexual violence, or a life-threatening situation. Whether experienced directly or indirectly through the media, these events can trigger intense physiological stress responses and even produce lasting traumatic effects.
Psychological trauma not only has an immediate emotional impact on an individual, it also affects their daily lives and relationships.
Individual responses to traumatic events can vary widely, depending on the context. Some people may experience short-term psychological shock and denial, while others may experience an acute trauma reaction or even develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is important to note that not everyone who experiences a traumatic event will become traumatized; protective factors may play a role.
After experiencing trauma, individuals may experience a variety of psychological and physical symptoms, including but not limited to re-experiencing the trauma, panic attacks, insomnia, and nightmares. The stimulation of certain sounds or situations may awaken painful memories and even cause people to relive the trauma.
This process, called trauma association, involves inadvertently associating harmless stimuli with traumatic experiences, leading to anxiety and emotional reactions.
In addition, the re-exposure to trauma not only affects emotions, but may also cause physical discomfort, such as migraines, hyperventilation and other symptoms. Over time, these reactions may cause individuals to lose their sense of self-efficacy, affecting their ability to regulate emotions and the development of their interpersonal relationships.
Trauma can be caused by human factors, technology and natural disasters, including war, abuse, accidents, etc. Sociodemographic factors also influence a person's response to trauma. When faced with stressors, individuals typically adopt three behavioral responses: active, reactive, or passive.
Proactive behaviors are usually corrections made before stress or trauma occurs, while reactive behaviors are corrections made as the traumatic event occurs.
Long-term psychological stress increases the risk of mental health problems. Studies have shown that individuals who experience extreme stress in their early years often affect the normal development and function of the hippocampus. The psychological trauma of war is often referred to as shell shock or combat stress response, and its long-term impact on the lives of many veterans is evident in the lives of many veterans.
When a person experiences a failure in an intimate relationship or a loss in perceived trauma, they may become emotionally unstable, followed by a surge in emotions such as anger and anxiety, which affects their ability to cope with daily life. ability.
As a result of re-experiencing trauma, many people choose to avoid it and may turn to psychiatric medications or even substance abuse to numb the painful feelings.
These people often fall into a state of emotional detachment, become numb to the things around them, and have increasingly weak social relationships, which may even affect their ability to provide emotional support and emotional regulation to their children. Deeply desperate parents may find themselves unable to effectively help their children deal with the consequences of trauma, and at this time, it is extremely important to seek professional mental health services.
For individuals facing confusing traumatic experiences, the pain expressed is indescribable. Although the emotional upheavals caused by trauma are rarely expressed in words, through professional psychotherapy, a path to recovery can eventually be found. Trauma may be rarely discussed, but understanding and recognizing your own emotional state and getting the right support is crucial.
Through understanding of the crisis and timely intervention, victims can be helped to overcome the psychological barriers caused by trauma.
Treatment of psychological trauma can be carried out through various methods, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic therapy, etc. These methods not only help victims understand the trauma process, but also guide them to gradually rebuild trust and emotional connections.
During the process of in-depth treatment, whether you can get the right care and support is crucial to the healing process. However, how to seek help, heal and establish a trusting relationship is still a topic worth pondering. How should we understand and treat that unspeakable past?