Emotional Trauma: A Personal Overview

Emotional trauma can be a very debilitating condition, all the more so because it is often overlooked by the sufferer’s friends, family and colleagues as simply a character flaw, which they expect the sufferer to overcome and just “pull himself or herself together.” Such an attitude exacerbates the condition with dire effects. Healing emotional trauma depends upon being able to recognize it in the first place and accepting it as a treatable condition.

Not only can emotional trauma be treated, but it must be treated – for the sake of the sufferer, as well as for the sake of those affected by his or her actions and attitudes as a result of the worsening condition. Left untreated, the psychological distress of the sufferer can lead to behavioural patterns that adversely affect those who are dependant upon him or her, thus possibly leading to emotional distress to them as well, becoming an unbreakable cycle.

We live in a traumatized world – and the greater the behavioural disorders are that result from it, the more our offspring will suffer emotion trauma stemming from ours, until it becomes the norm.

What Is Emotional Trauma?

Trauma is stress gone haywire; too much to cope with. It is an ongoing inability to deal with an extreme life event, stemming from a number of possible sources such as
natural disasters, war, violence, abuse, the sudden loss of someone upon whom we depend, an act by someone that destroys faith and trust, serious accidents, or loss of self worth in an inability to cope with a situation.

Abuse can include repeated acts of violence, rape or severe neglect. Sudden loss of someone upon whom one is dependant includes emotional dependency, like a sibling.

Emotional trauma may occur not only in a person suffering one of those causes, but in someone who has witnessed such an event.

Dealing with emotional trauma oneself – that is the sufferer – is too much to realistically expect. Sufferers need help to deal with emotional trauma, and when we recognize the condition in anyone, we have a moral and humane responsibility to assist that person in getting the help he or she requires.

Emotional trauma is a cruel affliction for anyone to suffer. By encouraging and helping such a person to receive treatment, we not only help the person to ease the suffering, but we are helping to establish that person to pursue a life where his or her potential can be fulfilled. In addition, we may well be helping others within the circle of the sufferer’s influence to avoid their own emotional trauma resulting from behavioural disorders of the sufferer.