Childhood Abuse and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

by Elaine Riley
(Lancashire, U.K.)

Hi! I've been away from this website for a while, 'cos in the U.K., as soon as we get the first signs of fair weather, we get out and start the gardening (well I do, anyhow!). It's amazing how fast weeds grow... they've swamped a lot of the newer plants I'd put in the garden last summer. Some radical overhauling was needed!

Anyway, "Charlie Dimmock" stuff aside, I've had some space to do some thinking... and it's lead me to this article...

In my line of work, you come across loads of interesting reading material; real food for thought - periodicals, journals, books, research papers... You name it! Anyway, there was this interesting one on the subject of Workplace Bullying, that really got me thinking (not least because I've just been subjected to a really nasty episode of it, myself!). The article suggested that individuals who experience bullying in the workplace react to it in much the same way a soldier might react to being in a war zone! Sounds a bit far fetched? Yeah! I thought that too, at first, but then I read further... and things started to make sense. You see, the article was all about individual's experiences of traumatic and stressful situations, and of how they react to these. It went something along the lines of this...

(Information taken from the "Bully OnLine" website...)

Bullying has been found to trigger COMPLEX POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD), and anything which induces recollections of the bullying will cause the sufferer to experience the following (which can be found reflected within the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for PTSD):

1. When exposed to either internal or external trigger factors, any of which are reminiscent of the original trauma, the individual will experience severe psychological distress.


2. The aforementioned will also induce psychological reactivity.


3. The sufferer may well want to avoid any thoughts, feelings, activities, people, places... that could remind them of the original trauma.


4. The sufferer may find that it is difficult, or seemingly impossible, to recall a significant aspect of the trauma.


5. The sufferer may find it hard to concentrate.
   We must be careful to remember that PTSD follows in the wake of a seriously unpleasant experience, and is a perfectly normal, natural emotional reaction to this.

Traumatic events trigger the body's "fight or flight" mechanism, inducing a massive surge of Adrenaline, aimed at priming the individual, at ensuring that they can either stand up and fight, or else flee the situation very quickly. Initially after the event, a sort of "shutdown" can take place, affecting both memory and recall. Again, this may have to do wit the release of brain chemicals such as Endorphine and Serotonin, which have a calming, soothing effect. The process CAN have beneficial effects, allowing for a "window period", a "gap" in time during which the individual can begin to feel "normal" again after the initial shock. This can aid in the recovery process, and if used effectively, "Talking Therapies" such as Counselling during this time can aid an individual to make sense of the event, to discover how they coped, and to plan how to deal more effectively with similar events in the future. They can additionally help ease the sense of "responsibility" that an individual may have for their part in the "drama".


This is not unlike the often-reported reaction to childhood abuse, and could go some way to explaining why signs of abuse are sometimes missed, and why abuse generally may be under-reported. The problem appears to be in respect of this "fight or flight" response! Where it is not physically possible to either fight or to run away (as in the case of childhood abuse, where the abuser is usually the more powerful), then the body must still take some form of protective measures. If it is not physically possible to "flee", then certainly it is mentally possible! The individual may consciously, or subconsciously, wish to distance themself from the event, especially where it is too unbearably painful to accept that it happened. This may be particularly likely in childhood abuse, where the relationship of victim to abuser is frequently a very close one. Therefore, the victim goes into "denial".

Unfortunately, it is not so easy to simply erase one's past! Eventually, the individual may recognise that something is wrong. Quite often, feelings may be be mistakenly identified as "stress" or "depression", where they actually mark the onset of PTSD. There may, or may not, be treatment implications in this; much will be dependent upon the understanding of your G.P. (or preferred choice of assistance). Sadly, medication is all too frequently offered, and may well not be the answer. As PTSD may be classified within what are known as the "Anxiety-related Disorders", then it is important that the correct identification of the disorder be made, and that treatment be appropriate.

Whilst the initial "denial" of the traumatic event may help briefly in the healing process (for example, if you've just broken your leg falling from a horse, then it is so much better to be able to concentrate just on healing the leg, without unpleasant memories of the accident), in the longer term it becomes problematic. Eventually, the individual is forced to lead an increasingly constricted life. Much of the sound advice offered by this website concentrates upon the need to seek assistance with ones problems, and in the case of childhood abuse, to seek the help of a qualified Counsellor. This should afford the opportunity to talk through what has happened, to re-evaluate the event, seeking reassurance that you are not to blame. It should attempt to lay to rest the issues of "guilt" or "responsibility", asking the individual concerned to accept that others may have been responsible for the occurrence, but without encouraging a cycle of "blaming". The Counselling ought ideally to allow for reflection, and to look at how an individual coped, encouraging them to see the strengths in themself, where otherwise they might be self-deprecating and lacking in confidence. Eventually, the individual is to be encouraged to look positively at ways in which, should such an event, or similar, occur again in the future, they can prepare for it and cope (or better, learn to read the signs that it may happen, and take preventative measures). Only then can the real healing process begin.