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How Common Would You Say Trauma Is?

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Cool Cat

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Okay, this is such a big big open question.

I'm always a bit embarrased to be up front and say to friends that I went to therapy not for depression, not for anxiety, not for an eating disorder but for trauma and self harm. That yes, while trauma resulted in depressive and anxious symptoms which I thought were the problem. But after a few sessions I learned that my hunch was right all along, the main reason I was the way I was was because of the way I was treated as a child. I was misinformed because there is so much awareness for spotting the signs of depression, but very very little for trauma - and you really have to look for it.

I always feel dramatic about saying traumatised. Maybe it's because I have improved? Maybe it's because I was never officially diagnosed. My well-qualified therapist said with no reservations that I am traumatised and the treatment we've done has been a huge amount of trauma work. He has refused to give me a definitive diagnosis because he felt it wasn't the right thing for me, it would be another thing to add to my "list of things that are wrong with me".

So I mean, I am a trauma person. No, I never exactly was attacked by a pack of savage elephants or fought in Vietnam. But yeah, I feel it is not common but not uncommon. If they say mental illness affects 1 in 4; what would you say it is for trauma? (and to the point that it effects or has at some stage affected their day to day living)
 
It's unfortunately very common. Here's some data on sexual abuse and PTSD I've collected for the book I'm writing. So the first paragraph and bullets would be data on the trauma stemming from child sexual abuse. The last para is about PTSD prevalence. You would have to bump up the numbers for everything from physical (non-sexual) abuse to traumatic injuries from accidents (big list). And the data for any kind of sexual abuse is low because so much is never reported to authorities. So yes, it's very common:


  • In the US, one of every five girls (20%) and up to one of every ten boys (10%) is sexually abused according to David Finkelhor (1994), who has conducted extensive research in this area. Data collected by the US Department of Health & Human Services shows similar results, broken down by age group (2012):
  • <1-2: 2.6%
  • 3-5: 14.0%
  • 6-8: 17.2%
  • 9-11: 18.4%
  • 12-14: 26.3%
  • 15-17: 20.9%

International data also shows similar results. A meta analysis (a compilation of results of several similar studies) of 22 countries shows that at least 19.2% of girls and at least 7.4% of boys had been victims of some form of sexual abuse before age 18 (Pareda 2009).
  • Among the population as a whole, the lifetime prevalence of PTSD (the likelihood that anyone will develop PTSD at some point in their lives) in the US is 6.8%, meaning that about 1 in every 15 people will get PTSD. The lifetime prevalence of anxiety disorders is 28.8%, mood disorders 20.8%, impulse-control disorders 24.8%, substance abuse disorders 14.6% (Kessler 2005).
 
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This is just my view, but I see trauma like a spectrum. In this world, most people will fall somewhere on this spectrum, and many of us will end up on the extreme side or PTSD 'zone'

We live in a world filled with violence and abuse for generations. In my humble opinion, it's way more common than we will ever know.

Sort of like how when more gay people started to come out, it seemed to everyone else that more and more gays started to magically appear on the earth but we were always here! Just hiding. Then as more people talked about it, more people started to come forward.

I think something similar about PTSD and this site has shown me more people than I ever thought I would've interacted with.

I think it's very common but perhaps the awareness is not
 
It is very common, which to me is a tragedy. Especially when the abuse starts in childhood. I am comforted though that there are more resources, services and opportunities for victims of trauma, then there was 30-40 years ago. We still have a long way to go. I believe every voice matters and am thankful for this site and the amazing members who courageously share their stories and encourage one another.
 
I'd say "extremely common". So why do we still feel like oddballs? Maybe because so many people are in denial and live dysfunctional lives without admitting they are suffering?

On top of what everyone else has said, when you look at whole populations of countries like Rwanda, the Congo, and others that have suffered massive wars and genocides, it's a wonder the world is still functioning at all. I read a book recently about an orphanage in Cambodia and it pointed out how an entire generation is still suffering because the previous generation never got help recovering from the trauma of living through Pol Pot's regime. It was pretty discouraging.

Sigh. I do see a lot of parents these days raising their children with awareness, and that give me hope.
 
Exactly! Why are we always having pissing contests, even about our pain?!
I know right!

I think if any trauma has come to affect someones day to day life it shouldnt need to be justified.

Because when I tell people I am traumatised they ask "What happened" and I dont want to say. And I also dont want them fantasising all the things that might have happened.
 
I'd say trauma is very common. But I don't think that means PTSD is terribly common (though likely under-diagnosed because we still don't understand trauma very well...it's easy to be diagnosed with depression but really have it rooted in trauma...and people do adapt or try to deny it sometimes, however badly...been there). So for me, it's about what the difference is along that spectrum. As an example, I had some medical trauma that others would also have been traumatized by, but perhaps gotten through okay. I didn't have good resources and also had a previous history of abuse and other medical traumas. So what became a pattern of very negative symptoms for me was related to trauma that lots of people have...some develop negative symptoms, some don't. I think that's why PTSD isn't diagnosed immediately, because anyone in a car wreck or other life-threatening scenario will go through some immediate shock. I think these kinds of traumas are very common because most people I know have been through at least one very scary or overwhelming event. But the abuse kinds of trauma are sadly under-reported and connected to loads of secrecy and shame.
 
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My therapist went to a seminar given by John Briere one year for his continuing ed requirement. When he came back he told me that when John got up to talk to all the therapists he said that it's starting to be understood that a lack of early bonding may be the most traumatic thing that can happen to a human being and told everyone that "we are all on the same bus."
I think he is one who has also spoken of traumatised societies/countries as @sun seeker said.

I find it encouraging to see how many people are working to overcome the trauma, that it's more recognized and that there are more resources for dealing with it. Still far from ideal, but the trend seems hopeful.
 
How common? CritA? Very & Not at all.

Depends on where one is, I think, whether there is a lot of confluence or not.
 
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