What defines a traumatic experience?
Traumatic experiences are subjective – meaning two individuals can be involved in the exact same situation, but one may develop posttraumatic symptoms, whereas the other may seem completely unaffected. How is this possible?
There are several reasons for this; generally, these reasons are cyclical (and interchangeable) in nature:
- First, some individuals have a previous history of adverse life experiences, such as injury, neglect, abuse, and so on.
- These adverse experiences often lead to negative self-schemas (frameworks through which information about ourselves is perceived) and generalized perceptions of our world. Adverse experiences also affect our nervous system, creating an overactivated sympathetic system (fight, flight, or freeze) and an underactive parasympathetic system (rest and digest). It’s as if our fight or flight system has been permanently switched to the “on” position.
- Negative self-schemas, altered or skewed worldviews, and adaptations within our nervous system change the way we think, feel, and act, ultimately impacting how our bodies respond to and make meaning of future stressors. Once the survival part of the brain is activated, it deactivates the thinking part of our brain, in turn making it difficult (even impossible) to access available resources.
- Lastly, the response/support we receive from others following an adverse event, will also influence whether the event is considered traumatic. If we have a felt sense of safety and connection following a difficult event, our bodies will likely remain regulated, and effectively process and store the sequence of events. Reversely, limited or unfavorable support will reinforce and enhance negative self-schemas & our perception of the world.
Below is a diagram to visually demonstrate this cycle.
