Rehab Educates on Managing Trauma Reactions

Houston, TX - SUN Behavioral Health Houston recently published a blog post educating the community on managing acute reactions to trauma. Trauma impacts the lives of anyone who has experienced it. It may have only happened once or multiple times or was made up of long-lasting repetitive events. The way someone reacts to trauma varies from person to person. Some appear to be less affected, while others may develop conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“This includes acute reactions to trauma, which sometimes develops into an acute stress disorder (ASD), but not always. Acute trauma reactions are short-lived responses to the traumatic event that develops. The person may be in a state where they are stuck in ‘fight or flight’ as their body perceives an ongoing threat. If ignored, it could progress into a chronic trauma response that significantly impacts a person’s life and often requires treatment to reverse,” the blog post states.

There are many different types of reactions that someone will have to trauma. These include emotional, physical, behavioral, cognitive, and social. Emotional reactions to a traumatic experience include feelings of sadness, anger, fear, shame, emotional dysregulation, or numbing. Numbing occurs when someone becomes detached from their behaviors, memories, and thoughts and masks their emotions. Physical reactions to trauma often manifest as concerns with sleep, respiratory, skin, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, and gastrointestinal. Some people might have difficulty falling or staying asleep and have frequent nightmares, stomach pain, chest pain, or muscle tension. If left untreated, it may develop into a more serious condition.

Behavioral reactions to trauma often include becoming avoidant of certain situations, overeating, participating in risky behaviors, or self-medicating with alcohol or substances. Some people may try to reenact their trauma to understand what happened, or they may consider self-harm or suicidal ideation. If someone is experiencing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, they must attend a 24/7 crisis care center as soon as possible. Trauma also alters how someone thinks, believes, and navigates their day. A cognitive reaction to trauma might be believing that all people are now dangerous, having survivor’s guilt, rationalizing the traumatic event, or experiencing unwanted, intrusive thoughts and memories.

Socially, people can also have reactions even if they have a strong support system they can lean on before the event. Reactions might include relying heavily on the support of their family or friends, or they might avoid them and believe they don’t understand. Some people don’t know who to trust or might see themselves as a burden. Isolation is also an expected reaction as they might feel it is the best way to protect themselves due to guilt, shame, and betrayal. It might also be a way to keep themselves from getting hurt, taken advantage of, or disappointed. Another social response is known as “trauma dumping,” which is a one-way interaction where someone overshares their experiences for someone who is not prepared for it.

Trauma reactions can be managed in several ways. One way is to validate one’s experience. Understand that the experience was real and the emotions felt are expected for non-normal experiences. Traumatic experiences are not the person’s fault, even if they had a role in its existence. Another technique is the 5-4-3-2-1. This involves examining 5 things that can be seen, heard, touched, tasted, and smelled. Then identify 4, then 3, then 2, and finally 1. These help calm and distract from the memories. Finally, laughter reduces stress in a person’s life and decreases the intensity of the overwhelming sensations associated with trauma. Being there for loved ones who have experienced traumatic events is essential to their recovery. Some ways to accomplish this include remaining judgment-free while interacting with them, letting them take the lead in conversations, and not offering unsolicited advice on their trauma.

“If your trauma reactions are impacting your daily life, talk to your doctor about the possibility of attending trauma therapy. Through therapy, you will gain skills that reduce the symptoms associated with your reactions. They will teach you how to lower stress and help you find healthy ways to cope with your experiences. You will also find healing and peace surrounding the events that took place,” the blog post continues.

SUN Behavioral Health Houston solves unmet needs for adolescents and adults. Their 24/7 crisis care center provides many individuals a safe space to go amid a mental health crisis. People do not need to call them beforehand; they can just visit the facility. They also offer no-cost care assessments that allow them to work with patients and their doctors to determine the best level of care to promote healing.

For more information, visit their website or call them today at 713-796-2273. SUN Behavioral Health Houston solves unmet needs.