What Is Trauma?

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Do you suffer from chronic pain, illness, or other physical ailments, especially with an unknown origin?

Do you have heightened defensive/protective responses; frequently feel anxious, on edge, or struggle to relax; or have difficulty sleeping?

Do you feel like you’re living in a constant state of stress, are often in “fight or flight” mode; become easily overwhelmed; or have trouble focusing, remembering details of events, or completing tasks?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, trauma could be at the root.

Trauma can have life-altering affects on our body, mind, relationships, and day-to-day functioning. It affects our physical, mental, behavioral, social, and spiritual well-being.

The difficulty of facing trauma—whether it was a one-time event or repeated exposure—leads many to push their emotions and experiences away rather than sit with and address them. This poses a significant problem because trauma that is suppressed (or not sufficiently processed) always resurfaces. In the words of author Jamie Wheal, our “issues are in the tissues,” meaning trauma is stored in our body until appropriately released, or “worked through,” which is echoed in the bestselling book, The Body Keeps The Score – Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D. (a excellent resource if you want to dive deeper into this topic).

“Trapped” trauma can manifest itself in the form of emotional dysregulation (e.g. intense feelings or mood fluctuations), a hypervigilant nervous system (i.e. increased sensory sensitivity or strong defensive pathways as shown in the diagram below), dysfunctional relationships, difficulty concentrating, a low self-esteem, anxiety, depression, and a slew of other physical and mental health conditions. Trauma is “stored” in our bodies tissues (primarily the muscles and fascia) until it is released, which can lead to chronic pain and illness, progressively eroding the body’s health.

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The number one thing that keeps someone “stuck” in trauma is avoidance, which is why I commend you for signing up for this series to learn more about trauma, how it affects the body, and steps you can take to heal. (If you haven’t subscribed to my blog to sign up for my series on trauma, you can do so here.)

To heal from trauma, it must be exposed and discussed. We must bring what happened into the light, where healing can occur in community from a place of acceptance and surrender. It is when trauma is sufficiently remembered—in a safe environment where you feel seen, heard, validated, and understood—that true healing can happen.

But before we can begin to heal from trauma, we must understand what trauma is. Over the next few weeks, we’ll explore 10 statements about trauma. Can you determine whether each one is true or false?

1. Trauma is any life-threatening event.
2. A variety of factors determine whether an event becomes traumatic for an individual.
3. The best way to heal from trauma is to forget about it and move on.
4. God promises to protect us from trauma.
5. 90% of U.S. citizens will be exposed to a traumatic event in their lifetime.
6. People who have experienced trauma are usually depressed.
7. The best way to support someone who has experienced trauma is to listen.
8. We can heal completely from trauma.
9. A key component in healing from trauma is safety.
10. Trauma “survivors” have a special calling to offer hope, help, and healing to others who are suffering.

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In today’s post, we’ll explore the first two statements. Let’s dive in…

1. Trauma is any life-threatening event. (False)

Many of us have reserved the term “trauma” for war veterans and others exposed to life-threatening situations, but trauma is much more than that.

In simple terms, trauma is an emotional response to something that happened to you that wasn’t okay. Your basic needs for love, safety, security, or belonging weren’t met and, due to factors we’ll explore later in today’s post, it left a lasting impact. In the moment, you may have felt hopeless, out of control, or powerless to change what was going on.

In more scientific terms, trauma occurs when an event outside normal human experiences exceeds your nervous system’s capacity to cope with it. It is simply too much to process or understand at the time.

Trauma includes all of the following:

• War/Combat
• Physical, Verbal, Sexual, Spiritual, or Emotional Abuse (also called the “hidden trauma”)
• Physical and Emotional Neglect
• Divorce, Separation, or Strained Relationship
• Abortion or Miscarriage
• Discrimination or Oppression
• Bullying, Cyberbullying, and Harassment
• Rape or Assault
• Accidental Disasters (e.g. car accident, plane crash, explosion)
• Deliberate Disasters (e.g. robberies, burglaries)
• Natural Disasters (e.g. fire, earthquake, flood)
• Life-Altering Accidents or Injury
• Victim or Witness of Acts of Violence or Other Crimes
• Life Threatening Diagnoses or Illnesses
• Loss of a Family Member or Friend
• Learning About or Witnessing Another’s Trauma

When a stressful life experience throws us into disequilibrium; our usual coping mechanisms fail; and there is evidence of significant distress, impairment, or dysfunction, we are at risk for that “critical incident” to become traumatic.

Mitchell and Everly (1996) define a critical incident as “an event which has the potential to overwhelm ones usual coping mechanisms resulting in psychological distress and impairment of normal or adaptive functioning.” Some red flag symptoms include major differences in behavior, acting out of character, chest pain and other signs of acute stress, and debilitating emotions that disrupt our day to day life.

If you live with chronic illness or pain, have you ever stopped to consider what was going on in your life in the months or years leading up to its onset? There is a strong correlation between what is going on in our lives and what is going on in our bodies. Often an illness or injury is just the tipping point in a chronic pain journey that started long before the first physical symptom appeared. The body can only take so much stress before it reaches a breaking point.

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The diagram above, from Curable (which you can also download here), outlines the path in and out of chronic pain. Note that challenging childhood experiences (also called ACEs), chronic stress, and major life events (which may or may not be traumatic), can contribute to chronic pain. Could any of these be a factor for you? (To learn more about Curable and get the app free for 6 weeks, click here.)

In the next statement, we’ll look at the factors that determine whether a “critical incident,” or highly stressful event, becomes traumatic.

2. A variety of factors determine whether an event becomes traumatic for an individual. (True)

What is traumatic for one individual is not necessarily traumatic for another because trauma is less about what happened and more about the individual’s response to what happened.

A variety of factors, including the individual’s age, sensitivity (e.g. highly sensitive people, or HSPs, are more susceptible), support system (i.e. someone to talk to/stay with the individual after the critical incident occurs), resources (e.g. money in savings/finances), and emotional stability (including healthy coping strategies) come into play. The frequency, intensity, and any previous trauma they experienced must also be considered.

Because our brain is not fully developed until our mid-twenties, a “critical event” that occurs during childhood is more likely to become traumatic. We simply don’t have the capacity to understand or coping strategies to handle it at a young age unless we are given the time, space, and resources to process and heal. Being bullied as a teen, for example, can be traumatic and lead to long-term issues with self-esteem, anxiety, depression, or PTSD.

One of the greatest determinants for whether an experience becomes traumatic is the level of peer support—whether help is available and the individual reaches out. When crisis happens and someone has presented the signs of critical incident stress, intervention needs to happen quickly (ideally within the first 72 hours). Something as simple as sitting with or talking to a pastor, counselor, or trusted friend helps mitigate the impact of the stress and keep it from exacerbating further. Too many people suffer silently; try to deal with the situation on their own; or self-medicate with food, alcohol, drugs, work, or risky behaviors that delay the healing process.

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When ignored or silenced, the symptoms of trauma will get worse. In the words of Tim Clinton, Ed.D, president of the American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC), “Your past isn’t your past if it’s affecting your present.” Unresolved trauma is a wound with tentacles that takes you back to the past and tries to keep you stuck there.

If you notice any of the following, it is possible you have unresolved trauma and seeking a professional could help. (Please note that this is not an exhaustive list.)

• Hypervigilance/Hyper-arousal (e.g. extreme reactions)
• Dissociation or Numbing (e.g. flat affect)
• A Highly Sensitive Fight or Flight Reaction
• Unexplained Chronic Pain or Illness Persisting for More Than 6 Months
• Emotional Dysregulation (e.g. Emotional Outbursts)
• Avoidance (e.g. avoiding people, places or things that remind you of the trauma)
• Feeling Disconnected from Others or Activities You Once Enjoyed
• Sleeplessness, Flashbacks/Re-experiencing of the Event and/or Reoccurring Memories
• Being Unable to Function At Your Normal Capacity
• Harboring Feelings of Guilt, Resentment, Anger, or Unforgiveness
• Struggling with Addiction or other Self-Medicating Behaviors

(To find a trauma-informed therapist through Better Help, an online platform that connects people with licensed counselors through remote teletherapy sessions, click here and also get 2 weeks of therapy free.)

A professional can point you to hope and provide resources to find your way through. The goal, when healing from trauma, isn’t to forget what happened, but to learn what to do with what we remember—to carry our memories in a way that is no longer toxic, harmful, or damaging to the individual and those in relationship with them.

As you work through your trauma, remember that, if God has allowed it, there is a reason for it—it will serve a greater purpose that you may not yet fully understand. Your pain did not slip through God’s fingers unnoticed. He holds you, and your trauma, in the palm of His Hand knowing your faith and His grace will get you through so that you can one day provide for others what He is providing for you.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

Call to Action: Next week we’ll look at the next few statements about trauma. Until then, ask yourself, “Does anything from today’s post resonate?” Is there something from the past that affected you, even if only a 2 or 3 on a 10 point scale, that is still affecting you today? Could trauma be part of your story or a contributor to your chronic pain?

Trauma can layer (one event on top of another) and also worsen over time if we push it down. But, when we bring it into the light, in a safe environment, it can lead to positive change, greater resilience, and increased compassion for others who experience life difficulties, which God will undoubtedly use to help heal and set others free.