Trauma affects emotions

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Trauma can be physical or mental. Trauma or pain affects emotions through stress. grieve, have negative thoughts or even lose hope about life. Good pain control improves the patient's emotional well-being.

1. Types of emotional reactions after trauma

Immediate Emotional Responses: Initial reactions to trauma may include exhaustion, confusion, sadness, anxiety, agitation, paralysis, dissociation, confusion, physical arousal, and severely affected. Signs of more serious reactions include ongoing distress without being able to calm down or rest, severe dissociative symptoms, and intensely intrusive recollection.
Late emotional responses: Delayed reactions to trauma may include persistent fatigue, sleep disturbances, nightmares, recurrent fear, flashback-focused anxiety, depression, and emotional avoidance emotions, feelings, or activities related to the injury.

2. Diagnosis of trauma-related emotional disorder

Trauma-related affective disorders include the following specific set of symptoms and criteria:
Sensitivity In addition to the initial emotional reactions, the most prominent reactions include anger, fear, and fear. , sad and ashamed. This may be related to past trauma.
Emotional regulation disorder

Post-traumatic stress has two emotional extremes: Feeling too emotional (overwhelmed) or too emotional (paralysed). Some trauma survivors have difficulty regulating emotions such as anger, anxiety, sadness, and shame - this is even more so if the trauma occurred at a young age. Substance abuse is one method that traumatized people use to try to regain control of their emotions, even though it ends up causing further emotional dysregulation. The person may attempt to regulate emotions by engaging in high-risk or self-injurious behaviors, disordered eating, compulsive behaviors such as gambling or overwork, and repression. or emotional rejection. However, not all self-regulating behaviors are considered negative. In fact, some people will be creative, live healthier, and participate in social organizations.
Emotional paralysis Emotional paralysis is emotional detachment from thoughts, behaviors, and memories. Patients will have expressions of hiding emotions inside, limited interaction and inability to associate any emotions.
Psychological changes The diagnostic criteria for PTSD focus heavily on psychological symptoms, but some patients may initially present with physical symptoms. Common symptoms and physical disturbances include sleep disturbances; digestive, cardiovascular, neurological, musculoskeletal, respiratory, dermatological disorders; urinary problems; and substance use disorders.
Somatic disorder The disorder is caused by psychological and emotional factors, but the patient has physical symptoms, although no physical damage is detected through testing. Patients with body dysmorphic disorder often present with persistent fatigue, vague pain sensations.
Sleep disturbance A common symptom arising from trauma is hypervigilance, which is characterized by sleep disturbances, muscle tension and a lower startle response threshold and may persist for many years after the injury. happen. Sleep disturbances can present in the form of early awakenings, restless sleep, difficulty falling asleep, and nightmares. Sleep disturbances are most often persistent in people with traumatic stress. This is one of the main diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic affective disorder.
Cognitive disorders Trauma can affect and alter cognition. Types of cognitive disturbances such as misperceptions, hallucinations or delusions, intrusive memories.

3. How to prevent and treat emotional disorders after trauma

Create an environment that allows the patient to recount traumatic events, traumas, and feelings of pain. Create a safe environment for the patient. Consult support measures when necessary. Help the person understand possible triggers for traumatic stress reactions, including delayed responses to trauma. Good pain control by combining medication with psychotherapy. Exercise, Yoga, Meditation Spending time with family, friends and people in the community (eg members of a social organization) In short, trauma causes more than just feelings of pain, physical damage. physically but also emotionally. Early treatment can help avoid more serious problems like depression. Trauma often heals with the help of relationships, so it's important to connect with those around you. Trying to maintain healthy habits like eating, sleeping, and exercising on a regular basis can reduce stress and help keep emotions in check.

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References: webmd.com, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov