What is Trauma?
Trauma is a fact of life. Children and adults may encounter traumatic events at any time during their lives: violence, abuse, accidents, wars, terrorism, falls, medical operations, divorces, etc.
These are events beyond our control, perceived negatively by us, individually experienced, occurred at ones or over time are defined as Adverse Life Events.
The impact of the 10 most common Childhood Adverse Life Events were investigated. These are events which have long-term harmful effects on one’s health. These are child abuse (emotional, physical, or sexual), child neglect (emotional or physical), and family dysfunction (domestic violence, substance abuse, mental illness or criminal activity, or parental absence). In addition, extreme economic hardship, bullying, school violence and community violence were identified as other common Childhood Adverse Life Events.
Childhood Adverse Life Events can cause children to develop cognitive styles or schemas in their developmental process. They are defined as Early Maladaptive Cognitive Schemas. These schemas, which are developed or internalized in the early stages of life, pave the way for the emergence of various psychological problems in adulthood and negatively affect one’s health.
The effects of negative life events encountered in childhood are stronger and play a role in the formation of trauma. Trauma occurring in childhood have been defined as Childhood Trauma: a general term for physical, emotional, sexual abuse and physical and emotional neglect experienced by individuals during childhood or adolescence. Any behavior that harms the physical, emotional, spiritual and social development of individuals under the age of 18 is defined as abuse and failure to meet their physical, emotional, mental and social development needs is defined as a neglect. These are situations that are beyond a child’s control and are perceived as negative (threatening) by the child, experienced individually and/or continuously.
Childhood Traumas
In individuals with Childhood Trauma, the fallowing issues are observed: self-identity and behavior problems, failure to establish nurturing relationships, depression, anxiety, social withdrawal, alcohol and substance addiction, unusual coping efforts, social isolation, aggression, problems in interpersonal relationships, loneliness, eating disorders, academic failure and academic adjustment disorder, suicide attempts, substance abuse, behavioral, developmental, social and emotional disorders.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
If stress regulation of the natural hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and sympathetic nervous system cannot be performed after trauma, the person experiences intense fear paralysis. Their feelings, thoughts, and behaviors change. They find it difficult to maintain his normal life and becomes dysfunctional in the areas where he was functional before. Such situations are defined as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (known also as Trauma). The nervous system cannot return to its pre-traumatic balance and settles into a new balance for the individual to continue his life. The individual is reminded of the trauma in some of the new life events he encounters, he is experiencing the same fear he experienced at the time of the original trauma event and his capacity to cope with new life events decreases. Unless the trauma is resolved and healed, the cycle continues and begins to prevent the person from living a healthy and happy life. Individuals experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder are advised to get help.
