If Trauma Had a Voice
How to Assist Teens in Managing Mental Health Needs
Trauma has a way of informing our experience of and reactions to life, in sometimes profound ways. Understanding these reactions and how to manage them, can make a significant difference on the journey to recovery - a journey that involves some of the bravest work a person will ever do.
Since 50% of assault survivors live with PTSD, the effects of trauma most often equate with some version of anxiety, whether mild or severe. But rarely is this anxiety clear-cut and simple. It can be accompanied by sadness or depression, and especially for young people, a sense of hopelessness: Will I ever feel safe again?
Trauma “triggers” are the people, places and things that remind a person of the traumatic event, and may even prompt a flashback where the person is back in the event as if it’s happening currently. For example, if my offender was driving a red sports car at the time of assault, red cars might trigger an anxiety response each time I see one. Most often though, the brain’s response to trauma is more generalized and hard to predict.
Instead of only being triggered at the sight of a red sports car, I may unexpectedly get triggered in other areas as well. For example, if I’m a teenager, I may feel a surge of fear while walking down a hallway at school, knowing I might see my offender. Or entering a party where I don’t know many people and where I can’t control the environment the way I can when I’m home in my room.
Past trauma has a way of unexpectedly urging us to a state of hypervigilance. That is its voice. Anxiety, fear and hypervigilance are the means by which the brain manages the overwhelming aspects of any given circumstance it perceives as threatening.
My experience of sexual assault occurred in childhood at the age of eight. Through much of my adulthood, there were moments where my trauma brain went into overdrive, anticipating a threat that was most often, imagined. In these moments, my neocortex (or executive brain) struggled to respond rationally to the situation since it was being flooded with hormonal distress signals from my amygdala, or fear brain.
When I entered therapy in my mid-twenties, and shared my sexual assault story for the first time, my therapist helped me see that the event at age eight had essentially left an imprint on me. From that day forward, when my trauma brain sensed danger, a five-alarm fire response ensued that would leave me feeling shaky and powerless. Years of my life were spent on high alert until I learned ways to use my executive, rational brain to calm the frightened surges of my animal (or fear) brain.
When we understand the voice of trauma, we have greater opportunity to respond proactively when that voice is triggered.
Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk, a leading trauma analyst and author of The Body Keeps The Score, states that, “Only the executive functioning part of the brain can access the animal brain…And only when you know your interiority can you have a life.”
For teenagers, brain development is still in process, since the neocortex doesn’t develop fully until approximately age 25. This is most likely why we are seeing massive mental health challenges among teens who are likewise impacted by sexual violence at higher rates now than ever.
The CDC recently announced that teens are in a mental health crisis, especially teenage girls, who report higher rates of sadness, hopelessness and suicidality than ever before. Youth of any gender are also experiencing higher levels of sexual violence in school than ever before. It doesn’t take a trauma specialist to observe that the two problems correlate: address the sexual violence, you will likewise address the mental health needs.
The tools that help someone heal from trauma are effective at assisting other mental health challenges such as depression and anxiety. Implementing the tools helps teens exercise personal authority over their mental wellness and self-care practices, whether or not they were victim to sexual assault/harassment.
Here are a few practices that will support teens in responding to the voice of trauma, as well as other mental health needs:
Look for your mirrors. “Mirrors” are the healthy people, places and things that remind us of who we are at the core. A favorite walking path, a best friend, a beloved pet, a comedy show or movie, an uplifting family activity, all serve to ground us in the moment and remind us: These are the things that help me feel better.
Practice somatic response. Since the body is the container for the mind, when we can calm the body, we likewise calm the mind. Placing a hand on your heart or rubbing the temples can send a soothing message to the brain: “I am safe in this moment.” Since exercise releases endorphins, taking a brisk walk or fitness class, helps the fear brain return back to baseline.
Meditation and yoga. Dr. Van Der Kolk found these to be the two most effective ways of responding to trauma. Yoga poses can be triggering for some people, so the practitioner must be able to avoid the poses that activate the fear brain. However, yoga is masterful at centering and calming the mind, as is meditation practice.
Breathe! It’s impossible to have an anxiety attack while engaged in deep breathing. This is because breath has a calming effect when done consciously and slowly. Similar to meditation, breath work is a return to Self, and it can be done anywhere at any time.
Come in to the Present. When the brain is flooded with stress hormones, the body goes into high alert and is in need of grounding. Focusing our attention outward helps take us out of our fear brain and into the present moment. For example, if I’m often triggered walking down the hallway at school, I might set my attention on the specific surroundings: the art on the walls, a display case, a flyer, or the sun through the window at the end of the hall. These will help ground me and get me back to baseline.
We at Be Strong, Be Wise understand that healing from trauma involves great courage and commitment. Our courses offer a component on assault response that allows students to know how to respond to the effects of trauma, but also how to respond to friends who are dealing with these same challenges. And since the 5-steps of the course are aimed at developing self-knowledge, each participant leaves with a greater sense of themselves, as well as ways to develop and sustain healthy relationships in life.
If interested in more information on our course for youth, go to: https://www.bestrongbewise.com/programs-for-youth