Psychological Trauma

A Psychological Trauma is a trauma that affects the mind through overwhelming experiences (exceeding psychological coping capacity).

• AKA: Emotional Trauma, Mental Trauma.
• Context:
  • It can manifest through Trauma Responses via psychological reactions and physiological changes.
  • It can disrupt Mental Functions through cognitive processes and emotional regulation.
  • It can impact Behavioral Patterns through coping mechanisms and avoidance behaviors.
  • It can affect Social Functions through interpersonal relationships and social interactions.
  • ...
  • It can often persist as Long-term Effects through psychological symptoms and behavioral manifestations.
  • It can often trigger Stress Responses through autonomic systems and hormonal changes.
  • It can often alter Brain Functions through neural pathways and stress hormones.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Little-t Trauma to being a Big-T Trauma, depending on its event severity and perceived threat.
  • It can range from being an Acute Trauma to being a Chronic Trauma, depending on its duration and frequency.
  • ...
  • It can require Therapeutic Interventions for trauma recovery.
  • It can benefit from Support Systems for healing processes.
  • It can involve Protective Factors for resilience development.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Trauma Types by severity, such as:
    • Big-T Traumas, such as:
      • Combat Traumas, including:
        • Active Combat Experiences in military contexts.
        • Warzone Exposures affecting civilian populations.
      • Natural Disaster Traumas, including:
        • Hurricane Experiences causing mass displacement.
        • Earthquake Impacts leading to community disruption.
    • Little-t Traumas, such as:
      • Relational Traumas, including:
        • Friendship Betrayals affecting trust dynamics.
        • Family Conflicts impacting emotional security.
      • Life Transition Traumas, including:
        • Job Loss Impacts on self-identity.
        • Relocation Stresses affecting social connections.
  • Trauma Types by duration, such as:
    • Acute Traumas, such as:
      • Single Incidents, including:
        • Accident Experiences causing immediate distress.
        • Assault Events leading to acute stress.
    • Chronic Traumas, such as:
      • Ongoing Abuses, including:
        • Domestic Violence creating persistent threat.
        • Workplace Harassment causing continued stress.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Physical Trauma, which affects bodily systems rather than psychological functions.
  • Normal Stress, which remains within coping capacity.
  • Temporary Distress, which lacks lasting impact.
• See: Psychological Resilience, Psychiatry, Psychology, Stress (Psychological), Emotion, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Protective Factor, Trauma-Informed Care, Mental Health.

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References

2021

• (Wikipedia, 2021) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_trauma Retrieved:2021-1-15.
  • Psychological trauma is damage to a person's mind as a result of one or more distressing events which caused overwhelming amounts of stress that exceeded the person's ability to cope or integrate the emotions involved, eventually leading to serious, long-term negative consequences. Given that trauma differs between individuals, according to their subjective experiences, people will react to similar traumatic events differently. In other words, not all people who experience a potentially traumatic event will actually become psychologically traumatized. However, it is possible for some people to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after being exposed to a major traumatic event. This discrepancy in risk rate can be attributed to protective factors some individuals may have that enable them to cope with trauma; they are related to temperamental and environmental factors from among others. Some examples are resilience characteristics and active seeking of help.

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