How our bodies respond to traumatic experiences
The connection between our bodies and our minds is intricate. This is especially true when we experience trauma. There are several experiences which can be considered traumatic, and we do not have a one-size-fits-all response to the same circumstances. This means that one person may experience the same event react differently and move on, whereas another person may experience it react in another way and may experience intense distress or disturbances about an event that was outside of their control. This means that a traumatic experience can be an event where you feel frightened, unsafe and powerless.
There is no ‘right or wrong way’ to experience something that is extremely distressing, and it is very human to have an emotional response to distressing events. I believe that this understanding may be the first obstacle against the stigma associated with trauma, where people can get caught in a cycle of self-blame.
Some examples of situations which may lead to trauma are:
Experiencing abuse, including sexual abuse or assault, physical abuse or assault, emotional abuse or maltreatment and neglect.
Witnessing domestic abuse
Community or school violence
Having a serious accident/injury
Witnessing a natural disaster
Witnessing war, terrorism or political violence
Forced displacement
Poverty
Race-based trauma
Traumatic grief/separation
It's important to understand that we are all unique. We may have different past experiences and coping styles which have developed the ways we have learned to react to danger and threat. This can happen for many reasons, such as our environment where we grew up to the proportion of muscle in our body builds.
Human beings have built-in survival mechanisms stemming from the way that our bodies are designed. This means that we make decisions in a matter of seconds when we are scared or feel threatened. In many of these situations, the choice of how to respond could be considered automatic with little to no conscious decision-making. For some people, after the environment is safe again they may be left questioning their actions which can be a large part of the healing journey in therapy.
So, how do our bodies respond to traumatic experiences?
In moments of intense stress, our bodies respond in a number of ways, known as the “5 fs” or the fight-flight-freeze-fawn-flop trauma responses. The more widely known fight or flight response is driven by the sympathetic nervous system, whereas our parasympathetic nervous system drives the freeze response. Whilst each response may be different they all share a common goal: to get you away from danger and protect you from harm.
In my attempt to describe these responses, I am going to use a metaphor where we consider our actions if we met a grizzly bear in the woods and what we might do in this instance.
(Disclaimer: Please note that none of these are recommendations of what to do when meeting with a grizzly bear there are other reliable sources on the internet for this!)
We meet a large grizzly bear in the woods and our sympathetic nervous system becomes activated. We may notice physical sensations as a chain reaction throughout our bodies occurs. This stems from the release of adrenaline in stressful situations activating the release of a hormone called cortisol from our adrenal glands. Physical sensations we may notice include an increase in our heart rate. Our blood vessels dilate increasing the blood flow to our heart, brain and to our muscles, whereas the blood vessels which aid digestion constrict temporarily. We notice our breathing (respiratory rate) changes which helps increase the oxygen in our blood and our pupils dilate to allow us to take in more light and improve our scanning of nearby surroundings. Our thoughts may quicken as we focus on the source of the threat and potential ways to escape.
Fight
In this instance, our choice may be to fight the bear (fight response) or run away from the bear (flight response).
We may fight when we estimate that we cannot escape the danger but judge that we may have the strength and /or resources to do something about it. When we fight we expend a large sum of energy and make a quick calculated risk that we may get harmed in the process, whether it's through standing up for ourselves or physically attacking our opponent. This may not always be the most desired option by our brains due to our risk of injury.
Flight
Whereas flight may be the first and most desirable option by the brain, as it gets us out of the situation and into safety lowering our risk of getting harmed or hurt when compared to fighting back. This may be helpful as we leave the situation as fast as possible, however, what happens when we are not running away from a bear, and instead we cancel plans, or leave unexpectedly during a meeting? It may play some havoc in our daily functioning.
Additionally, there are instances where neither fighting the bear nor running away is an option for us, instead, we may react in the lesser-known trauma responses: freeze, fawn or flop. It is important to understand that these are also survival instincts to prevent further harm, however, people often describe upset, anger, shame or guilt that their bodies or mind betrayed them when faced with danger. It can often be part of the healing journey to understand this.
For instance, if we meet a grizzly bear in the woods like a deer caught in headlights we might freeze or try to blend into the background by playing dead from the bear. If we tried fighting back, fleeing or freezing several times, we might try to keep the bear happy or even faint as we become physically or mentally unresponsive to protect ourselves from the pain inflicted by the bear.
Freeze
When we freeze in response to danger our brain has determined that fighting or running could further jeopardize our safety, instead we do nothing. We become panicked and may be unable to move or make decisions. In reality, this is a tactic to survive the threat as we do not want to make the situation worse. Where the fight or flight activates our sympathetic nervous system, during the freeze response our parasympathetic nervous system becomes activated, and our heart rate and breathing slows down. We might notice that our muscles become tense as we stay frozen to the spot.
Fawn
The fawn response may involve complying with or appeasing what is threatening us. For people who have faced abuse, this may appear as people-pleasing to diffuse conflict and return to a feeling of safety. It may not always work, but it is an attempt to reduce further harm in extreme situations. For people facing these situations, they may engage in a self-blame cycle or receive blame from others. This is why it is so important to understand why this response has been used, it was to prevent harm.
Flop
Finally, in the face of trauma, some people may become so overwhelmed that they become physically or mentally unresponsive through dissociation or even fainting. Although similar to the freeze response in terms of immobility what is different about the flop response is that your muscles relax and your body becomes ‘floppy’. This may be described as an out-of-body experience. It’s important to understand that this is also the brain trying to protect itself against mentally and/or physically harmful experiences.
Therefore, for many trauma-experienced people, part of the therapeutic process is identifying their trauma response/s and how impacts the way that they feel. It can be helpful to build compassion towards our bodies understanding that we have survival mechanisms that have tried to get us out of harm's way. Furthermore, despite frustrations about the current impacts/interruptions to our daily living with support, there are ways to overcome our past experiences with different therapeutic frameworks to fit different needs.
At MAPP Psychology we help to match you with one of our Psychologists who can provide support. If you are interested please get in touch for a free telephone consultation today.
-Corinne Tatem