Counselling for Traumatic Experiences: Causes, Signs, and Remedies

This essay examines the causes, signs, and effects of traumatic experiences through three different case studies. It explores the appropriate interventions for each case and highlights the role of counselling in helping individuals recover from trauma.

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Introduction
Trauma can be generally referred as a disturbing or a deeply distressing event. It is an
extra ordinary stressful event that shatters one’s security and makes him or her feel helpless
in a hazardous world (Van der Kolk, 2017). These experiences often involve a threat to one’s
safety or life, a situation that makes one feel overwhelmed and does not necessarily cause
physical harm. Traumatic experiences are often caused by one-time events such as an
accident or a violent attack especially one that happens in childhood, ongoing relentless stress
such as fighting with a life-threatening disease, living in a crime dominated neighbourhood
and when one is constantly experiencing traumatic events such as bullying, childhood neglect
or domestic violence (Ungar, 2013). Another cause of trauma is for instance the sudden
death of someone close and the breakup of a very important relationship. There are several
psychological and physical signs of trauma. The psychological signs include shock,
confusion, anger, anxiety, guilt, withdrawing from others, feeling sad and feeling
disconnected (Paivio & Pascual, 2010). The physical signs include nightmares, fatigue,
racing heartbeat, difficulty in concentrating, aches and pains and muscle tensions. In this
essay, three different case studies shall be examined to determine the various causes, signs
effects and the possible remedies for the traumatic experiences involved.
Case study 1: Sally
In this case study, the victim experiences two traumatic experiences. First, she gets
involved in a headlong car accident and later she is subjected to a painful physical
rehabilitation for months. We are told that before the accident, Sally was a very cautious and
responsible diver with a good driving record and therefore the occurrence of this accident
could have been a huge traumatic experience to her.

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Several signs as an evidence of the traumatic experience by Sally include her sweating
palms, increased breathlessness, stomach cramps and increased heartbeat rate. We are also
told that it is a year later and still she has not yet driven a car on her own. She has racing
thoughts whenever she wants to get into a car and most of the time, she prefers using a train
to travel. A car accident threatens one’s life, this has made Sally to avoid any stimuli related
to this event and often changes her moods when she nears a car. An individual of this type
may suffer the risks of post traumatic stress disorders such as anxiety and intrusive thoughts
about the accident.
Sally’s disorders after the accident are mostly behavioural and therefore the most
appropriate intervention is cognitive behavioural therapy. She should find a way of sharing
and elaborating on the way she felt, thought and acted during and after the accident. Through
sharing of a stressful event, its emotional effect is reduced (Wilson et al, 2011). Another way
is to stay active and make regular exercises. This involves taking part in activities that do not
bother any injuries that she sustained in the accident with the help of a doctor or a counsellor.
This also helps in erasing the memories of the accident.
Another way is to try to get back to her daily activities and routine. She should try and
eliminate the fear of travelling by a car and also start to drive on her own and while driving,
she should learn on how to be a defensive driver. Although driving can be hard after an
accident, one should practice defensive driving to lower the risks of future accidents. This
involves wearing safety belts and avoiding distractions like eating and talking over the phone
while driving.
Case study 2: Reza
Reza experiences several traumatic incidents. At bare age of twelve, he witnesses his
father being assaulted at the detention centre when trying to protect his younger sisters from

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attack, he witnesses violence and several threats to life and dignity. At this point, we are told
that Reza felt powerless to protect and support his family.
Several post-traumatic signs are evident in Reza. First, he feels powerless to protect and
support his family. He also harbours a lot of anger and aggressiveness; he assaults a
classmate in school. Besides, he withdraws from the others as evidenced by what he says, “I
don’t trust them (other school students and teachers). I’ll fight if I have to show them, I’m not
weak.” He says that he tries to stay away from his fellow students but they do not let him do.
He says that it is better to stay in Afghanistan and become soldier so that he fixes his country.
We are also told that he does not have many friends except the few boys who are his
neighbours. He also feels isolated from the others since he says that the looks he is given by
the fellow students make him feel so mad. Besides, he feels shameful in sharing the
experience. It is stated that at first, Reza could not share this story and was resistant to
counselling. He just says he was glad when they got out of the detention.
Reza also displays several physical post-traumatic signs. Reza lacks the ability to stay
focused and on track. He does not concentrate in class. He says, “I can’t sit still in class. I
can’t understand what the teacher is saying.” The inability to concentrate in class goes on to
affect his grades. He also lacks social support which can be linked to his lack of trust to other
people. He always perceives others as threats and feels better when alone.
After a traumatic experience, like the one above, adolescents usually undergo several
developmental disorders that exposes them to several risks. During this stage a lot of physical
and mental changes take place in the body, these include rapid brain development. Exposure
to trauma at this stage therefore affects the development of the teen’s brain. The exposed
individuals exhibit different rates of adaptations. Some display a long-term health problem
while others adapt with very little symptomatology (Winkle & Safer, 2011). According to

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(Heffernan et al, 2010), psycho-social coping factors are related to the likelihood of problems
developing after the experiences. Different people employ different defensive and coping
strategies to aid in the protection of their emotional and psychological well-being. Some of
the identified protective factors include the ability of the child to make use of adults in
caretaking activities, his ability to recognize and avoid dangers, the ability to manage anxiety,
and his capacity to think and find meaning in the experience (Nhac-Vu et al, 2011). Other
essential factors include the cohesiveness of the family and community around the affected
child.
Reza is currently a teenager and therefore the most relevant technique to help him is the
person-centred therapy. This therapy encourages the victim to take lead in discussions and in
the process, discovers his own solutions (McTeague et al, 2010). Thus, one needs to listen, be
open and always available and let the teenager know that you would always be there for him
or her. One also needs to be aware of the awkward activities that such a teenager would get
involved in after the traumatic experience. Such activities include thinking about the event all
the time, using violence to get what they want, refusing to follow rules, being rebellious at
home or school and difficulty in paying attention in school (McTeague et al, 2010). Some of
these are evident in Reza.
In helping him to recover from the traumatic experience, first one should make Reza feel
comfortable when talking about the experience. The response to what he says should be
calm. It is also important to show him that you understand what he is saying by for instance
repeating in your own words what he says. Also try to praise his efforts of accepting to share
the experience. The response to what he says should be positive. Lastly one should
encourage him to share to other people he confides in or write a story in a journal about his
feelings. Through research, it has been identified that sharing of bad or stressing experience

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helps in reducing the emotional attachments one has to that particular experience (Frank et al,
2010).
Another way to assist in such a situation is to encourage the victim to get engaged in
various comforting routines which include playing the favourite sports, listening to music and
looking at photographs. These, according to (Krysinska & Lester, 2010), bring a sense of
hope. The last way to enrol such victims in various programmes that teach one on various
ways of resolving conflicts.
Case study 3: Jessica
In this case study, Jessica has experienced several traumatic events. First, in her
childhood, she loses her mother to suicide making her to be raised by a single parent. She is
then later exposed to physical and sexual abuse by the extended family members. Jessica
further experiences sexual abuse by her husband alongside physical and psychological torture
from someone she loves. She then witnesses her young child hit his head against a sharp
object which makes him to be hospitalised for several months. The last traumatic incident
that Jessica experiences is her break up with her husband.
Several post- traumatic signs are evident in Jessica. She confesses that she is safe but
regularly experiences increasing nightmares and difficulties in sleeping. She therefore takes
alcohol to help her sleep. However, Jessica takes some bold steps to help her in coping with
her stress, she for instance breaks up with her husband, she has secured a job and she has a
son for her comfort.
The above case study generally reveals the events of domestic violence and the risks that
one gets exposed to. From the way Jessica is sexually abused in her childhood to the way her
husband mistreats her in marriage clearly illustrates the domestic violence. The physical and
emotional abuse that a woman gets exposed to in this type of violence increases the risk of

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developing several mental illnesses (Alisic et al, 2014). It has been established that women
who have been subjected to this kind of treatment are prone several post- traumatic stress
disorders which include anxiety, depression, and thoughts of suicide and substance use as
evident in Jessica (Perez et al, 2012).
The domestic violence has various short term and long-term effects. The short-term
effects include minor injuries such as cuts and bruises, broken bones and other internal body
injuries. The long-term physical effects include arthritis, asthma, digestive problems, chronic
pain, heart problems, stress, migraine headaches, nightmares and sleeping problems among
others (Finley et al, 2010). Some of these such as physical injury and sleeping problems are
present in the above case study. Besides these, women also undergo mental health problems
after the violence. As a way of coping with these effects, some women get engaged in drug
abuse and others in risky behaviours such as unprotected sex. Unhealthy eating patterns can
also be displayed by women who have been sexually abused and as a result, have a wrong
perception of their own bodies.
Another risk of this domestic violence is that it can lead to a traumatic brain injury. In the
case study, we are told that hit a sharp object on the head that made him to be hospitalised.
The traumatic brain injury has several consequences such as leading to loss of consciousness,
confusion, memory loss, nausea and vomiting, slurred speech and a difficulty in
concentrating (Smith et al, 2011). On long term basis, the traumatic brain injury leads to
anxiety and depression. It is also said that it can lead to problems in one’s thoughts for
instance it affects one’s ability to make and execute a plan.
Jessica’s disorders can be handled by cognitive behavioural therapy. This therapy helps
in solving this problem by boosting happiness through modification of dysfunctional
emotions, thoughts and behaviours (Walker, 2014). Just like in the previous cases, Jessica’s

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situation can be managed by making her get engaged in various recreational activities such as
sports, music and dancing to help in erasing the memory of the violence she experienced. She
should also be encouraged to start contacting his husband to settle the previous
disagreements. Lastly, Jessica should undergo counselling in a rehabilitation centre to assist
her in recovering from the alcohol addiction. The above activities could help her to recover
from the traumatic experience.
Conclusion.
Trauma is a very stressing event that is caused by various experiences such as an
accident, domestic violence, loss of a loved one or break up of a very important relationship.
The victims may display several symptoms such as shock, anger, anxiety, withdrawing from
others, guilt, night mares, sleeping problems and many others (Becker et al, 2010).
Generally, these post traumatic disorders can be treated by making the affected individuals to
participate in recreational activities, advising them to get back to their normal routines, by
making the stressful event look normal and by referring such individuals to a counsellor or a
doctor.

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