Season Two, Episode Six: Understanding Trauma

Peace, Love, and Psychology

In this episode we discuss the phenomenon of traumatic exposure in three parts. First, we define what trauma is and explore how the definition has changed and expanded over time. Second, we break down what is happening within our bodies when we are in the middle of a traumatic event. We discuss how the information associated with danger produces rapid, profound changes in our body and can overwhelm our mind’s ability to effectively deal with the situation. We take a look at a conceptual framework clinicians and researchers use to understand what is happening during trauma, the adaptive information processing model, and we discuss how it helps a person to understand the kinds of reactions they may have to traumatic exposure. Third, we discuss four major categories of reactions that a person can have after having gone through a traumatic event: reexperiencing, activation, avoidance, and negative cognitions/beliefs.
We explore the different kinds of reexperiencing episodes a person may have following trauma and relate these back to the information processing model. We then explore types of activation in order to understand how they manifest. Coping mechanisms that involve avoidance behaviors are then described, in an effort to distinguish conscious and unconscious processes, and we touch on the possible role traumatic brain injuries can play in these behaviors. Finally, we explore how undergoing trauma can radically change a person’s world view, resulting in negative cognitions and beliefs about the safety of the world and the individual’s place in it.
By understanding what trauma is, how it is processed in the body and mind during exposure, and what may happen following trauma, a person can better understand the path to recovering from traumatic exposure. This understanding will set the stage for beginning to visualize what trauma recovery looks like, for learning about approaches to healing trauma, and for discovering a pathway toward post-traumatic growth.

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Recorded and edited at Studio 970West, Grand Junction, CO.
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