Our Journey
Origin of Trauma
The word trauma is of Greek origin and means “wound”. We have noted, in our work as psychologists over the past 20+ years, the wounds that have cut our people deeply and the indelible scars that remain. It took us some time but we have narrowed our focus, our life’s work to this core issue for our people into the KAHLE Journey. We have seen the impact on our minds, culture and behaviours; we have seen the bloodletting. We believe that at this point in our journey, we have the tools to make it better, not to eliminate the scars, but to soften them so that they do not become an impediment to our growth, so that they are scars that are a mark of our resilience and post-traumatic growth and not scars that merely represent pain and suffering.
Trauma Symptoms & Correlates
The symptoms are far-reaching and range from the flashbacks and nightmares common in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD]; the emptiness, sadness and numbness common in Depression; panic, fear and worry, common in Anxiety; anger and impulsive behaviours common in Behavioural Disorders; inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity common in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder [ADHD] to learning problems, crime and violence, loss of work productivity and even non-communicable diseases.
Trauma in our Daily Lives
Several other elements exist that are notable that either contribute to an experience of trauma or are an off-shoot of traumatic experiences:
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Trauma and Race and Class/Socioeconomic Status
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Trauma and Intimate Relationships
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Trauma & LGBTQ+ orientations
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Trauma, Deafness and Blindness
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Trauma and Sex
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Trauma and Parenting
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Intergenerational Trauma
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Trauma and Natural Disasters
Trauma, The Body & the Brain
“We have learned that trauma is not just an event that took place sometime in the past; it is also the imprint left by that experience on mind, brain, and body…. Trauma results in a fundamental reorganization of the way the mind and brain manage perceptions. It changes not only how we think and what we think about, but also our very capacity to think.”
- Bessel Van Der Kolk, Psychiatrist and Author, The Body Keeps the Score
Research has demonstrated that our brain and body are different after experiencing trauma. Our nervous systems are altered while key structures of the brain are also changed, causing challenges with decision making, learning, memory, attention and the regulation of emotions.
The brain’s neurochemistry becomes chaotic, with increases in hormones such as adrenaline (‘fight or flight’ hormone) and cortisol (stress hormones), & oxytocin (love & trust hormone) which decreases.
These changes in the brain further impact our bodies, causing negative effects on our immune system, sleep quality, and contributes to non-communicable diseases [NCDs] such as hypertension (high blood pressure) and diabetes [sugar].
As world famous psychiatrist and trauma researcher Bessel Van der Kolk states “the body keeps the score”.
