Trauma is a word that often brings to mind images of major, life-altering events: car accidents, natural disasters, or violent attacks. While these are indeed traumatic experiences, trauma itself can take many different forms. It’s important to understand that trauma is not always about being exposed to "big" events. Sometimes, trauma results from more subtle, ongoing experiences that shape our emotional and psychological well-being.

What Is Trauma?

At its core, trauma is a response to any event or series of events that overwhelms an individual’s ability to cope. It can affect how we view ourselves, others, and the world around us. Trauma is subjective—meaning that what is traumatic for one person may not be for another. What’s crucial to recognize is that trauma is often not about the event itself, but the emotional and psychological impact it leaves behind.

Trauma can arise from many sources:

• Acute trauma: This comes from a single, isolated incident, such as a car crash or sudden loss of a loved one.

• Chronic trauma: This involves repeated and prolonged exposure to distressing situations, such as ongoing abuse, neglect, or living in a war zone.

• Complex trauma: This occurs from prolonged exposure to multiple or varied traumatic experiences, often in childhood, such as emotional abuse, abandonment, or neglect.

Not all trauma is tied to explicit events. For example, betrayal trauma can happen when someone we deeply trust violates that trust—like a parent or partner. Betrayal trauma often shatters our sense of security and safety, leaving us feeling vulnerable and unsure of our relationships with others.

Sometimes, trauma isn't rooted in a specific incident, but rather in repeated messages we absorb, often in childhood. These messages can come from parents, caregivers, or society. They might be subtle: being constantly told you're "not good enough," or being ignored in favor of siblings. Over time, these messages can shape our self-esteem and how we relate to the world, often sinking into our subconscious and influencing our thoughts and behaviors well into adulthood.

Trauma-Informed Services vs. Trauma-Informed Therapy

Understanding trauma is essential to understanding how professionals address it through trauma-informed services and trauma-informed therapy. While the terms may sound similar, they refer to two distinct approaches.

Trauma-Informed Services

Trauma-informed services refer to the broader system or environment that acknowledges the prevalence of trauma and its impact on individuals. These services aren’t necessarily focused on treating trauma directly but are designed to create a safe, supportive, and empowering space for individuals who may have experienced trauma.

The core principles of trauma-informed services include:

• Safety: Ensuring that the environment feels physically, emotionally, and psychologically safe for all individuals.

• Trustworthiness and Transparency: Open communication and honesty are crucial to building trust with individuals who may have experienced trauma.

• Peer Support: Encouraging connection with others who have similar experiences can foster a sense of understanding and validation.

• Empowerment and Choice: Trauma often strips individuals of a sense of control. Trauma-informed services work to empower individuals, allowing them to have agency in their decisions.

• Cultural Humility and Competence: Recognizing and respecting the diverse ways people experience and respond to trauma, based on factors such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, and more.

In practice, trauma-informed services can be found in schools, healthcare settings, social service organizations, and more. For example, a trauma-informed healthcare provider will be conscious of how certain medical procedures, like being touched without consent, might trigger past trauma and will adapt their approach to avoid re-traumatization.

Trauma-Informed Therapy

While trauma-informed services create a safe environment for individuals, trauma-informed therapy focuses specifically on treating and healing trauma. A trauma-informed therapist is trained to recognize the impact of trauma on an individual’s mental health and to tailor therapeutic interventions accordingly.

Trauma-informed therapy differs from other forms of therapy in several ways:

• Understanding Trauma Responses: A trauma-informed therapist understands that behaviors, reactions, or emotions that may seem irrational to others could be direct responses to trauma. They approach clients with compassion and non-judgment.

• Safety in the Therapeutic Relationship: Trust and safety are crucial in trauma-informed therapy. The therapist prioritizes creating a space where clients feel heard, respected, and in control.

• Pacing and Sensitivity: Trauma-informed therapists are mindful not to push clients to revisit traumatic memories too quickly, as doing so can cause further harm. They proceed at the client’s pace, ensuring the client feels supported throughout the healing process.

• Addressing the Body and Mind: Trauma doesn’t just affect the mind; it often leaves an imprint on the body as well. Many trauma-informed therapies, such as somatic therapy or EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), address the body’s response to trauma in conjunction with the psychological aspects.

A key principle of trauma-informed therapy is recognizing that individuals may not even realize that their current challenges—such as anxiety, depression, or difficulty forming relationships—are rooted in trauma. A trauma-informed therapist works with the individual to explore how past experiences may be influencing their present life, often gently helping to uncover these links in a supportive and non-threatening way.

Why Trauma-Informed Care Matters

Whether you’re seeking therapy or engaging with services like healthcare or education, it’s important to find professionals and environments that understand the wide-ranging impact of trauma. Trauma-informed approaches are essential because they meet people where they are, respecting the unique ways trauma affects everyone differently.

For those who have experienced trauma, especially the subtle, often overlooked kinds like betrayal trauma or childhood messages that erode self-worth, a trauma-informed approach offers hope and healing. It ensures that those who have suffered are not retraumatized by the very services meant to help them. Instead, it empowers them to regain control, rebuild trust, and work toward healing at their own pace.

In Conclusion

Understanding trauma and the difference between trauma-informed services and trauma-informed therapy is crucial for anyone seeking to heal from past wounds. Trauma isn’t just about big, catastrophic events. Sometimes, it’s about the accumulation of smaller, insidious experiences that shape how we view ourselves and interact with the world.

Whether through trauma-informed services that create safe and supportive environments or trauma-informed therapy that directly addresses and heals trauma, both approaches offer essential tools for recovery. They honor the complex, deeply personal nature of trauma and pave the way toward healing, growth, and empowerment.