Western culture has taught us that suffering is a problem to be solved, discomfort a symptom to be medicated away, and trauma something to avoid at all costs. Yet, research by psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun suggests we may have this entirely backwards. Their work on post-traumatic growth reveals that some of life's most profound transformations-positive changes in self-perception and relationships, greater self-awareness and confidence,
Have you ever gone completely quiet in the middle of an argument-your mind blank, your mouth frozen? Or felt so overwhelmed after a fight that you left-not just the room, but the relationship itself? I've been there. And for a long time, I didn't know why. I thought I was the problem, or maybe I was just cold. Unavailable. But I've come to understand something important:
Early trauma can have a multitude of detrimental effects and consequences-one of which is dysregulated arousal. Traumatic experiences can disrupt the normal functioning of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and cause arousal extremes through overactivation of the sympathetic or parasympathetic nervous system (SNS and PNS, respectively). Indeed, individuals with trauma histories can experience hyperarousal (fight or flight mode; SNS activation) or hypoarousal (freeze or numbing; PNS activation) in response to perceived threats (Corrigan et al., 2011; Ogden et al., 2006).
In our current clinical landscape, "trauma" has become a ubiquitous term-both in the scientific literature and in popular discourse. The word is invoked in diagnostic manuals, self-help books, and even casual conversation. The dominant narrative around trauma today often privileges a view of trauma as a "thing"-a technical problem with distinct behavioral, neurobiological, or cognitive symptoms that exists apart from the lived experience of the person.
He said this to try and make me feel like schizophrenia is nothing that is really that different from what others experience, so I shouldn't feel weird, abnormal, or ashamed. I truly appreciate the intention behind what he is saying; however, it really has me thinking of this analogy, whether it has merit, and what the true differences are between a nightmare and a psychotic break.
Masked federal agents now routinely patrol the immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza, creating an atmosphere where immigrants fear not the hearings but their outcomes after dismissal.
Students have dropped out of summer and afterschool enrichment programs, opting to stay home in fear of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detaining their family and friends.
Ismael, 13, and his brother Estebao, 10, recount their abduction by armed members of the ISIL affiliate in Mozambique, emphasizing the traumatic impact it had on them. They were seized from their village while playing, increasing concerns about the rise of child abductions in the Cabo Delgado region.
My sister, who I love, thinks she’s the only one who is right and gives unwarranted advice based on her current trends, which are increasingly concerning.
Anna Friel portrays Anna Mitchell, a mother dealing with profound trauma after her brother is released from prison and assaults her young son. The narrative explores her struggle with trust and the impact of this betrayal on her mental state.
Thematically, ‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North’ is about a group of Australian prisoners of war constructing the Burma railway in the mid-1940s, focusing on the lasting trauma of conflict and imprisonment.
"My baby was alive but 16 weeks is too young. I'm holding my baby and I could tell that there was nothing I could do. My baby had 10 tiny fingers and toes and was perfectly formed but was just tiny, the size of a pear."
"We looked at the sky confused at first. Smoke billowed from the mountains. The wind picked up and the flames kept rising," Yilmaz recounted, describing the same panic, the same suffocating fear.