Most people are likely to be exposed directly or indirectly to potentially traumatic events. These may be single episodes such as a motor vehicle or other accident, physical or sexual assault, natural disasters e.g. flood, cyclone, earthquake, bushfire; a terrorist act; or repeated and persisting events e.g. domestic violence, childhood abuse/neglect, military and emergency services roles, refugee and war experiences. Intense emotional feelings such as fear, anger, shame, guilt, terror, numbness, powerlessness or hopelessness often affect the survivors.
The usual process is for this intense emotional state to lessen and stop a few weeks after the event i.e. the natural healing processes take place. For some, and it is a significant minority the natural process does not operate as well as expected and people have difficulty recovering following traumatic or stressful events. This is not a measure of weakness or inability. The emotional distress continues and may develop into mental health conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), acute stress reaction, depression, an anxiety disorder, other mood disorders or a substance use disorder. These are not necessarily exclusive. Repeated trauma and children abuse increases the likelihood of negative physical, psychological and social effects.
Symptoms may include:
There are evidence based psychological interventions which are effective that are recommended for the treatment of disorders such as PTSD and are used by our trained therapists. Other evidence based approaches are also available for other associated disorders such as depression, anxiety, mood and substance use.