What is trauma? – Part 2

*The following passage contains definitions of trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and some examples of traumatic experience. This material may cause distress or fear so please exercise caution and discretion if you choose to continue reading.*

Herman defines three main features of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): hyperarousal, intrusion, and constriction (Herman 51). She writes: “Hyperarousal reflects the persistent expectation of danger; intrusion reflects the indelible imprint of the traumatic moment; constriction reflects the numbing response of surrender” (Herman 51).

We will consider hyperarousal first. For instance, consider a former soldier who has experienced combat and has lost several close friends on the battlefield. He or she may experience “increased heart rate and blood pressure” in an everyday situation that recalls the terrifying experience of being under fire, or the pain and shock of losing a friend, or the almost constant fear of death (Herman 52). Many individuals with PTSD experience anxiety and nervousness that might make it harder to fall asleep, or more difficult to calm down (for instance, one might startle quickly in response to an unexpected noise or sudden jolt that recalls past experiences). Herman writes that in such cases the individuals are plagued by “an elevated baseline of arousal: Their bodies are always on the alert for danger” (Herman 53).

Herman writes, “Long after the danger is past, traumatized people relive the event as though it were continually recurring in the present” (Herman 53). This phenomenon, which characterises PTSD, is defined as intrusion. Reliving the traumatic event occurs in different ways for every individual, but several symptoms are unfortunately common. Some individuals experience terrifying and repetitive nightmares in which the event, or a variation of it, is replayed repeatedly. The individual—both during the dream and upon waking—is terrified, helpless, numb, and frozen (Herman 53-55). Traumatic memories are intrusive in the sense that individuals often experience flashbacks that are experienced as events in the present rather than in the past (Herman 54-55). Thus, traumatic memories are different from ordinary non-traumatic memories: the former “lack verbal narrative and context; rather, they are encoded in the form of vivid sensations and images” (Herman 55). For instance, a survivor of sexual assault or abuse may experience fractured images, sensations, or emotions as a result of past experiences. Or, to protect against the terrifying assault of memory, a survivor may become unable to experience emotions at all: they become numb or unable to experience vivid emotions. Another terrible consequence of trauma is that many survivors find themselves re-living or re-experiencing the event (sometimes in “disguised” form) (Herman 58-59). For example, a car accident may suddenly transport the survivor of war or sexual assault back to the events in the past—bringing horrific memories and painful emotions flooding back and causing feelings of helplessness, shame, and guilt.

Herman identifies constriction as another element of traumatic experience for the survivor. Due to the overpowering nature of trauma (which refers to how the emotional impact of the event or series of events may overwhelm the individual’s ability to make sense and meaning out of experience), the individual may feel paralysed; helpless; powerless; and frozen (Herman 62-63). One survivor described their traumatic experience in the following way: “ ‘I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t move. I was paralyzed…like a rag doll’” (Herman 62). This debilitating paralysis is another symptom of PTSD which often results in a numb or affectless state of mind—the survivor is left without feeling or emotion to protect the self from the overwhelming nature of the traumatic experience (Herman 62). Many survivors report experiences of dissociation: the splitting of the self. Herman quotes a survivor of sexual assault: “ ‘I left my body at that point. I was over next to the bed, watching this happen…. I dissociated from the helplessness. I was standing next to me and there was just this shell on the bed…. There was just a feeling of flatness’” (Herman 63). In other words, the individual divorces emotional life from perception and understanding as a way of numbing and anaesthetising pain; in this way, she achieves a measure of protection from her terrifying experiences, but at the cost of cutting herself off from feeling entirely.

Despite the extremely painful nature of trauma, and its power, therapy can help you to work through, and come to terms with, traumatic experiences. Through building a strong and secure relationship with your therapist, you may slowly feel able to remember and talk through even the most painful experiences and feelings. Although traumatic events are overwhelming and terrifying at the time of their occurrence, and often remain so for a long time afterwards, their power can be slowly diminished through exploring your memories, thoughts, feelings, and associations in a safe environment, with a therapist who you trust. Developing a relationship with a trusted therapist is important in part because it allows you, the client, to think about, experience, feel, and talk about your experiences in a confidential setting. When we allow ourselves to experience our feelings, while also representing those feelings in language, our experiences slowly lose their quality of incomprehensibility or overwhelming force. Language, emotion, and thought can help us to gain control of traumatic experience.