Psychological Traumas: Concept, Realities… And Some Myths
Let’s imagine a frozen lake. Yes, like those in American movies, in which children skate and play ice hockey. Or better, like those on which the heroes walk very slowly so that their surface does not crack. Better like the latter.
We rarely imagine that that lake can bear any resemblance to our mind, much less to our happiness. Possibly we live in a reality in which our well-being, instead of being that lake, is a compact glacier, where it is difficult to scratch the surface, and we do not even consider the possibility of sinking.
But what would happen if it were possible? What would happen if the layer of ice that separated us from the murky depths was as thin as cigarette paper, and gave us the feeling of being about to break. Can you imagine the constant stress and panic we would be under?
This (note the literary licenses), in addition to many other things, is what makes up the reality of a traumatized person, or in other words, who suffers from symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. And yet, he lives on; He does not die of fear, just as we believe he would happen to us if we lived the metaphor of ice.
He trauma It has been used by all artistic disciplines to, generally, exemplify madness. Soldiers who abuse their spouses, traumatized children who become abusers, abused teenagers who become serial killers… We could go on and on.
But, making an effort to avoid clichés, let’s start with the real meaning of this label in clinical practice. He post-traumatic stress disorder It is a diagnostic label that encompasses the symptoms that may occur after witnessing an event that threatens life or integrity (physical or psychological), responding to it with reactions of intense fear, helplessness or horror.
Symptoms of psychological trauma
Now, broadly speaking, These symptoms listed on the label would imply:
“Go back” to being the same
It is important to emphasize that like the rest of the diagnostic labels, this one in particular It is just a way of calling a group of symptoms, of problems, to speak clearly.. That’s all. “Post-traumatic stress” does not mean: “having a bunch of problems and also being crazy.” Although it is a very widespread way of using labels, let’s advocate for respect.
However, why this cruelty with this particular thing? It is possible that it is because of the morbidity that mental illness can produce, and because of the way in which it has been sold for so many years. The myth has been generated that traumatized people are forever broken, and this is false.. “He is traumatized, he will never be the same again.” No, this is not like that. Psychological trauma does not imply a chronic situation of discomfort and disorder with no turning back.
Beyond recovery, which is definitely possible and for which there are a wide variety of treatments (narrative therapy, biofeedback, or the applications of cognitive-behavioral therapies and rational emotive therapy, to name a few), It is necessary to attack the dichotomous approach that society offers us today regarding these topics.
The doubt of “being the same again”, despite being logical, It ends up being more of one of those movie fears than a phrase with real meaning. In human beings, learning is continuous, and therefore, being the same as before necessarily implies “not moving forward” or “not living.” It would be unfair and illogical to demand that anyone (with or without trauma) go back to being exactly the same as they were before. We are constantly evolving, constantly building.
And in this problem, going back to what you were before can be a very harsh cliché. An impossible test if we remember the stress and panic of getting lost in the depths. We can give the option of being “the one from before” and “something else.”
And it is in that “something more” where each one has the freedom to live or move forward. But always both things at the same time.
