Trauma is Really Strange

36 Pages·2016·5.732 MB·English

by  Steve Haines

TRAUMA IS REAUY STRANGE-
I /
DAVID UVIN6STONE 15 MAYBE THE ULTIMATE
VICTORIAN HEROIC EXPLORER· OUT
HIS MANLY MUSTACHE·
'I HEARD A SHOUT; STARTIN6 AND
LOOKIN6 HALF AROUND I SAW THE UON
JUST IN THE ACT OF SPRIN61N6 UPON
ME··· 6ROWUN6 HORRIBLY CLOSE TO
MY EAR. HE SHOOK ME AS A TERRIER
DOES A RAT· THE SHOCK PRODUCED A
STUPOR SIMILAR TO THAT WHICH SEEMS
TO BE FELT BY A MOUSE AFTER THE FIRST
SHAKE OF THE CAT·'
SQUEEZE ANY HUMAN BEIN6 HARD ENOU6H AND
THEY WILL DISAPPEAR·
\ I /'
-
DRf:AMIINE~'S IN WHICH THERE
OF TERROR·'
THE DREAMY, STUPOR
STATE IS DISSOCIATION. AN
IMMOBIUZATION OR FREEZE
RESPONSE· DISSOCIATION IS
ONE OF THE STRAN6E THIN6S
ABOUT TRAUMA·
IF IT CAN HAPPEN TO OUR HERO
FRIEND. IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU·
This is 0 classic descriplion of dissociation from David livingstone, James Rhodes (2015). pianist and sexual libuse survivor, sloles dissociation
wriling in 18S7 (Kandel el 01 2000). Leading traumo spedolisl Bessel is 'The mosl serious and long-Iusling 01 allihe symptoms of obuse ... e¥er
von der Kolk (2014) sloles 'Dissociation is the essence of Irouma.' Afler a since then, like 0 Povlov puppy, the minute 0 feeling or silualion even
traumatic event people ohen drill in and aul of diuociolion. threatens to become overwhelming, 10m no longer then.'
THE GOAL OF THIS BOOK IS TO BE A NON-SCARY MOST OF THE BITS OF THE BRAIN THAT DEAL WITH
INTRODUCTION TO TRAUMA- FOR MANY PEOPLE. OVERWHELMING EVENTS ARE VERY OLD-SOME OF
UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE BRAIN IS TRYING TO DO THE REFLEXES WE USE TO RESPOND TO DANGER
TO PROTECT THEM HELPS HEAUNG- ORIGINATED IN REPTILES-
IN FIGHT-OR-FUGHT. RESOURCES SUCH AS FIGHT-OR-FUGHT OR DISSOCIATION SWITCH ON
OXYGEN. BLOOD AND SUGAR ARE DIVERTED TO REALLY REALLY REALLY QUICKLY- UNLESS THEY ARE
THE BIG MUSCLES AND THE BRAIN- PRIMITIVE DISCHARGED. THE BRAIN CAN DEFAULT TO THESE
REFLEXES TAKE OVER- UFE AND DEATH SCENARIOS LONG AFTER THE
DANGER HAS PASSED-
THIS 15 THE BIG PROBLEM OF TRAUMA-
'GET ME OUT
OF HERE NOW"
THE EXCITING NEWS IS THAT THEY CAN ALSO SWITCH WE ALL HAVE WITHIN US
OFF REALLY QUICKLY - EVEN IF THEY HAVE BEEN STUCK THE ABIUTY TO ENDURE.
IN PLACE FOR YEARS- RECOVER AND LEARN
FROM OVERWHELMING
EVENTS-
A (ommon response is controuing 10 make ourselves I I r inlo Running oway from a lion is IHe or deolh. All non-essenliol activity is sWilched
on immobile, feral pasHian. We Ofe leh bracing ourselves ogoinsl life, off, Ihere is no need for digeslion, libido and reproduuion, immune system,
disconneued from our infernal and exl8rnol worlds. 'Trauma occurs when or growth and repair ISopolsky 2004). Health (an dromalicolly improYB
on nenl (teoles on unresolved impoct on on organism' (Levine 1997). when Ihe 'delense (ostod,' is resetlKozlowsko el aI201S).
lET'S LOOK AT SOME STATEMENTS FROM
CUNICAL PRACTICE THAT DEMONSTRATE
THE STRANGENESS OF TRAUMA·
t- 'I FEEL AS IF I AM OUTSIDE MY BODY·' 'MY LEGS ARE TINY AND FAR AWAY·'
ALSO. DISSOCIATION··· CAN MAKE US··· A BIT CWW'
WE W5E CONNECTION Willi OUR BODY OR PART5 OF OUR BODY· IT 15 HARD TO 5TAY PRE5ENT AND GROUNDED·
DI550CIATION 15 DIFFICULT TO IDENTIFY A5
'WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW·'
OLD PART5 OF THE BRAIN ARE TRYING TO
5TOP U5 5EN51NG, DI5TANCING U5 fROM
lliE BODY AND UMITING OUR PERCEPTION·
PEOPlE CAN RElY ON THINKING
AND fUNCTiON PRETTY Wru.,
BUT OfTEN REPORT lliEY fill
CUT OFF> UKE AN OB5ERVER·
'I CAN'T GET ENOUGH AIR IN·' 'THERE 15 A KNOT Of ANXIETY IN MY BEUY·'
'THOUGHTS KEEP INVADING ME, IT'S AN 'I CAN'T KEEP STllli MY MIND 15 RACING·'
OBSESSION I CANNOT LET GO Of·'
(Iassic pOSllraomoli( stress disorderlPTSD) symptoms indude involuntarily Being stuck in fou forward (on be very praduniv!_ There ore many
re'experiendng ospew 01 the traumatic even! in a very vivid and 5u(cessful ueculives whose Inlernal slale drim them forword. 8uI the
distressing way, oyoidllme behaViour, hyperarousol and emotional numbing imperative from the body is uhimolely very draining and frequently
(HICE 2005J. u50doled wilh massive onliely.
'I'M 5HAKING, 15 SHAKING AFTER A DRAMATIC EVENT 15 OFTEN
THI5 NORMAl?' ASSOCIATED WITH FEAR· SHAKING UNCONTROll.ABLY
FEELS BIZARRE AND TOO MUCH·
lETTING OUR5ELVE5 5HAKE CAN BE A VERY
POWERFUL TOOL AND CAN BE USED UKE A 5AFETY
VALVE TO ClEAR EXCE55 ENERGY· WE CAN lEARN
TO INTERACT WITH SHAKING, RATHER THAN TRYING
TO DAMPEN IT DOWN All. THE TIME· SHAKING CAN
BE UNCOUPlED FROM EMOTIONAL INTEN5ITY·
RESTLESS LEG5 AND TENSION SHAKES ARE VERY
COMMON WHEN WE ARE OVERWHElMED·
SHAKING 15 BE5T UNDERSTOOD
A5 A WAY OF EXTINGUI5HING
FEAR AND DISCHARGING All. THE
ENERGY MOBIUZED FOR FIGHT
OR-FUGHT'
(MORE ON THE 5TRANGENE55 OF
SHAKING LATER.)
The 'I'ms haking, is Ihis normol?' quole is from II young girl alter watching The amount 01 people who experience reslless leg syndrome IRIS) is
hOI iirsl deer be killed. Her dod does on amozing job of uauuring her and surprisingly high: 'RlS aHem 5"-10%o f oduhs in the general population,
helping her discharge, check You Tube: 'Savannah's first deer hunl', lind is ossodoted wilh various chronic tondilions' lli el 012013).
WE CAN USE THREE STATEMENTS TO
1· 'THERE IS TRAUMA·' TERRIBLE THINGS
HELP UNDERSTAND WORKING WITH AND
HAPPEN TO HUMAN BEINGS·
OVERCOMING TRAUMA·
3. 'IfEAUNG TRAUMA IS ABOUT MEETING THE BODY·'
2· 'WE CAN OVERCOME TRAUMA·' 1!:l'TRAUMA. OLD PARTS OF THE BRAIN CHANGE
H(jW THE BODY WORKS· BY PAYING ATIENTION TO
FEEUNGS IN THE BODY AND lEARNING TO SELF-
WE CAN REBOOT THE BRAIN·
"REBOOT
WE ARE 'WIRED TO
SURVIVE'· WE WOULD
NOT BE HERE AS A HUMAN
SPECIES UNLESS WE
HAD EVOLVED WAYS OF
RECOVERING FROM THAT
UON ATIACK COR SUDDEN
lJlSS OF A LOVED ONE. OR
BEING ABUSED. OR BEING
IN AN ACCIDENT··:>·
'As I laorned more about how people monoge 10 wilhstond extremely These three statements ore drown from the work of Dr David Ber(eli, creolor
oversive events, iT beUlme all the more opporenl to me Ihol humans are of Trauma Releasing £leftises (TRE). The body is centrol 10 healing, as
wired 10 survive. Nol every-body manages well, but most of us do' (Bonanno oflen ',here life no words 10 describe Ihe depth of human experience the
2010). trauma survivor hos been plunged inlo' (Berteli 20080).