The Impact of Traumatic Events on Mental Health
Traumatic events can be defined as experiences that put either a person or someone close to them at risk of serious harm or death. These can include:
road accidents
violence/prolonged abuse
natural disasters
serious illnesses.
What happens when you experience a traumatic event?
When you experience a traumatic event, your body’s defences take effect and create a stress response, which may make you feel a variety of physical symptoms, behave differently and experience more intense emotions.
This fight or flight response, where your body produces chemicals which prepare your body for an emergency can lead to symptoms such as:
raised blood pressure
increased heart rate
increased sweating
reduced stomach activity (loss of appetite).
This is normal, as it’s your body’s evolutionary way of responding to an emergency, making it easier for you to fight or run away.
Directly after the event people may also experience shock and denial. This can give way over several hours or days to a range of other feelings such as sadness, anger and guilt. Many people feel better and recover gradually.
However, if these feelings persist, they can lead to more serious mental health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
People experiencing PTSD can feel anxious for years after the trauma, whether or not they were physically injured.
Common symptoms of PTSD include re-experiencing the event in nightmares or flashbacks, avoiding things or places associated with the event, panic attacks, sleep disturbance and poor concentration. Depression, emotional numbing, drug or alcohol misuse and anger are also common.
The most effective therapeutic approach for long-term, severe PTSD appears to be talking treatments with a clinical psychologist, in which the person with PTSD is encouraged to talk through their experiences in detail. This may involve behavioural or cognitive therapeutic approaches.
Antidepressants may also be prescribed to relieve the depression which people who have survived trauma often experience at the same time.
Depression
Depression is different from feeling down or sad. Someone experiencing depression will experience intense emotions of anxiety, hopelessness, negativity and helplessness, and the feelings stay with them instead of going away.
Talking therapies such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and some forms of counselling and psychotherapy work well for depression. Anti-depressants may also be recommended, either on their own or in combination with talking therapies.
What to do after experiencing a traumatic event
Turn to others for support
It can be difficult to talk to close family or friends after a traumatic event. You may not want to cause them any distress or may simply want some space to process it all. However, it is important to be around other people when you feel able to, as they can help with your recovery and wellbeing. You do not have to talk to them about the experience. If you don’t have anyone close by to talk to, you can contact one of the organisations below, who will be able to offer further help.
Look after yourself
It is important to look after your health and wellbeing. This can include taking a break or some time away to deal with your experience. You should also try and keep a healthy diet and stay away from drugs and alcohol, which can exacerbate the problem.
Seek professional help
If you are experiencing symptoms that are affecting your day to day life, it is important to get professional help as soon as possible so you can begin to get better. You should consider seeking help if:
you don’t have anyone to talk to
you don’t feel like your feelings have returned to normal after 6 weeks
someone close to you has noticed changes and is urging you to seek help
your work or studies are affected
you find it difficult to carry out daily tasks
you are using drugs or alcohol to cope.
The first person to approach is your family doctor or GP. He or she should be able to give advice about treatment, and may refer you to another local professional. There are also a number of voluntary organisations which can offer advice or a listening ear.