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This is a trying time for all of us. The COVID vaccine is gradually getting distributed, but we're nowhere near the end of this pandemic. The viral strains are increasingly mutating, and even if you're vaccinated, you can still contract and spread the virus asymptomatically. Before the COVID-19 pandemic and surely after, there's another silent pandemic spreading through the world, untreated psychological trauma.
Contemporarily, more are affected by trauma than ever before. This is my specialty in my therapy practice, and I've been booked solid, along with most of my colleagues. The word trauma comes from the Latin word meaning "wound." In medicine, professionals use the word "trauma" to refer to physical damage to body parts. By contrast, psychological or emotional trauma, loosely defined, also refers to another type of wound: any past event that creates significant hardship and impairment in the present, at least one month after it occurred. Unfortunately, many suffering from acute or chronic trauma symptoms are misdiagnosed, usually by well-intentioned, but misinformed health providers who haven't received sufficient trauma-informed training.
So who can you know if you or a loved one is suffering? You can briefly fill out the most common PTSD assessment tool (PTSD stands for post-traumatic stress disorder, which is the most common trauma diagnosis but not the only one), which the U.S. government has released for free since the 1990s with all its iterations. That said, it's not meant to be the only diagnostic tool, but one of a few factors used to determine if one is suffering from trauma. Basic questions you can ask yourself or a loved one are, in the last month have you, from a past stressful event:
- Lost interest in activities you used to enjoy after (a) stressful event(s)?
- Avoided activities or situations because they remind you of what happened?
- Had disturbing repetitive dreams or nightmares about what happened?
- Had difficulty concentrating or sleeping or changes in your diet since what happened?
- Felt very upset when something reminds you of what happened?
- Had physical reactions when something reminds you of what happened (i.e., shortness of breath, racing heart, sweating, or muscle tension)?
- Had repeated disturbing thoughts, images, or memories of what happened?
- Avoided thinking or talking about what happened?
- Felt emotionally distant from others since what happened?
- Found yourself acting as of what happened just happened?
The most common of the symptoms above are hyperarousal (the mind and body stay in a crisis-like state of tension and exhaustion, ready for danger even when there is non or past danger have passed), hypervigilance (the body and mind are constantly scanning for any signs of danger, and frequently reacting to false-positives), and intrusive thoughts about the traumatic event replaying ceaselessly and uncontrollably in one’s mind.
These aftereffects can last for weeks, months, and sometimes years or decades; similarly to if a serious wound or broken bone didn't receive medical attention long-term. Psychological trauma also can cause difficulty focusing, racing and intrusive thoughts, and flashbacks of the traumatic experiences. It can wreak havoc on sufferers’ relationships and quality of life. It can also affect sleep patterns, the immune system, diet, and other physiological processes significantly.
There's a history in our culture of downplaying mental health and only taking physical health seriously. Mental and emotional health are overall health; they are synergistic and complementary. Trauma psychotherapy, especially EMDR therapy, can be thought of as a potent emotional surgery. If we wouldn't hesitate to seek medical care for a physical health issue, why would we with our mental health? It may just save your life.
Consult the Psychology Today therapist directory to find a qualified trauma specialist in your area.
This post is for educational purposes and should not substitute for psychotherapy with a qualified professional. Copyright Dr. Jason Linder.
