Trauma is a condition caused by a severe life-changing event that may be a natural disaster, an accident, or may be due to death of a loved one. There can also be other reasons for trauma, such as having a divorce or rape. Trauma has severe effects on the mind and body of a person. Trauma can affect the physical and mental health of a person. Trauma can also cause anxiety, depression, and chronic pain. It can also cause weakness in the immune system and an increase in heart rate. There are many ways by which trauma affects our minds and body. In this article, we will discuss how trauma affects the body.

How Trauma Affects the Body?

Trauma can affect the body of a person in different ways. It can cause headaches, twitching, heart and lungs disorder, vomiting, nausea, dizziness, insomnia, and high blood pressure.

Cardiovascular Problem:

Trauma can cause cardiovascular problems or can increase the risk of many heart diseases. It can cause an increase in heart rate or high blood pressure.

Chronic Stress:

Trauma can cause a stress response in the body that remains for an extended period and cause chronic stress. Chronic stress causes an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases because it causes high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, and disturbance in blood vessel function.

Poor health Behavior:

Trauma can also cause poor health behaviors in an individual experiencing trauma. The person can start smoking, which increases the risk of heart disease. Also, persons with trauma have an increased risk of taking drugs, alcohol, etc.

How trauma affects Psychological Health?

Trauma can have various effects on mental health.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder:

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a condition caused by trauma. It happens after experiencing trauma. Experiences like sexual abuse, a natural disaster, and childhood abuse can cause post-traumatic stress disorder.

Symptoms of PTSD:

There are the following symptoms of PTSD

Horrible Thoughts:

PTSD can develop horrible thoughts and distressing memories. It can cause flashbacks related to the traumatic event and feelings of shame and guilt.

Avoiding Behavior:

PTSD causes avoiding behavior. The person experiencing trauma wants to avoid social gatherings, places, or activities related to the trauma.

Treating PTSD is essential because it can affect daily functioning and quality of life.

Depression

Trauma can cause depression. If anyone is experiencing a loss of a loved one, sexual abuse, child abuse, and hopelessness in life, depression is natural.

Anxiety

Trauma events can cause fear, worry, and panic, leading to anxiety disorder. So, an individual becomes more prone to anxiety symptoms. Trauma causes persistent anxiety and fears even when a trigger is not present. If you and someone related to you are experiencing anxiety symptoms, you should consult a mental health professional. Treatment for anxiety is cognitive behavioral therapy.

Personality Changes:

Trauma causes changes in the personality of a person experiencing trauma. The person becomes isolated, aggressive, overreactive, irritable, and more guarded. Every person responds to trauma differently.

How trauma affects children?

Trauma significantly impacts children and can affect their physical, emotional, and cognitive development.

Behavioral problems:

Children who experience trauma may have behavioral and emotional problems, which include anger, aggression, anxiety, and depression.

Learning difficulties:

Trauma can impair a child’s ability to focus and learn, leading to school and academic performance difficulties.

Sleep problems:

Trauma can cause sleep disturbances, such as insomnia, nightmares, and night sweats, affecting a child’s physical and emotional well-being.

Physical health problems:

Children who have experienced trauma may experience physical health problems, such as headaches, discomfort, and other somatic symptoms.

Delay in development:

Trauma can disturb normal developmental processes, which causes delays in physical, emotional, and cognitive development.

Relationships problems:

Children who have experienced trauma may struggle to form healthy relationships with others, leading to social isolation and difficulties with attachment to others. They find it difficult to interact with new friends and strangers.

It’s important to know that the effects of trauma vary from child to child. Early diagnosis can reduce the long-term impacts of trauma. Getting the support of a mental health professional can be especially helpful in knowing the effects of trauma on children, and it can promote healthy development.

How trauma affects brain development in children?

When a child experiences trauma, his brain functions differently than other children his age. Trauma affects different brain areas responsible for regulating emotions and controlling behaviors. Children who experience trauma face difficulty trusting someone and bonding with someone. Trauma also alters the way by which the brain develops new neural connections. It also affects the growth and maturation of the brain, which cause difficulty in learning and memory.

Effects of trauma on the self-esteem of children:

Children with trauma can experience low self-esteem, low confidence, and feelings of shame and guilt. These children can’t defend themselves because of low levels of self-esteem because which has long-lasting effects on children. Children consider themselves inferior to others. These children struggle with feelings of insecurity and self-doubt.

Effects of trauma on the cognitive ability of a child:

Trauma has many adverse effects on the cognitive ability of children.

• A child who is experiencing trauma finds difficulty in learning lessons because flashbacks of traumatic events don’t let him concentrate and learn his lesson. It affects his school performance.
• Children who have had trauma don’t have good communication skills. They can’t communicate with people normally. These children find it challenging to communicate and express themselves.
• Trauma also has effects on the decision-making ability of children. Children can’t make their decision and can’t solve their problems.
• Trauma also affects the memory of a child. The child can’t remember things easily.

It is important to note that different traumatic events affect different children differently. Effects on the cognitive ability of children depend upon the severity of trauma.

Seeking Professional Help:

Seeking professional help regarding trauma is essential because therapists and counselors help the traumatic person to know the root cause of the trauma and give a supportive and healthy environment so that the traumatic person can honestly tell about his trauma. If you want professional help regarding trauma, you can visit https://victim2victor.net/. She is an excellent coach and therapist. Do check her website for fantastic therapy.