How Trauma Affects Us at Every Age
No matter your age, or where you are in life, experiencing trauma can have a major impact on you, your self-esteem, and your ability to complete daily tasks and enjoy everyday life. The effects of trauma can easily outlast the event itself, lingering and appearing as stress, anger, depression, and other trauma responses years, decades, and even lifetimes later. Since trauma can happen to anyone of any age, it is hard to predict exactly what you might experience, and how it will affect you in the long run.
At Whole Self Therapy, we help our clients address, assess, and heal from trauma, whether it has been plaguing you for years or the emotional wound is still fresh. Here, we are sharing a few quick facts about trauma, what it can look like at various stages of life, and how it can affect you at every age. With the help of a therapist, you can begin to explore and unpack your past and how it affects you today and start the journey of self-acceptance and healing.
Childhood Trauma
Unpacking childhood trauma can feel like a daunting task, largely due to the amount of emotional and cognitive growth/change one undergoes between the ages of 1-13. Childhood trauma can permanently affect the brain, literally impacting how it forms and influencing emotional intelligence. While childhood trauma takes many forms, some examples of common traumatic childhood events include:
Extended separation from a parent/guardian
Abuse from a parent/guardian or adult/authority figure
Bullying
Chaotic or dysfunctional environments
Death of a loved one
Physical trauma/accidents
Medical trauma
Common symptoms/responses to childhood trauma include:
Trouble with emotional regulation
Sudden mood swings
Losing skills or regressing
Attachment issues
Anxiety, depression
Trauma In the Teen Years
Our teen years are some of our most important since it is between 13-19 where our brains are going through the largest amount of change - since we were babies, that is. A difficult and stressful time without outside influences, trauma as a teen can impact your first steps into adulthood. Some common traumatic experiences teens may encounter include:
Emotional or physical neglect by a parent
Sexual abuse or trauma
Bullying/social isolation
Extreme stress from major events (death, divorce, standardized tests, college applications)
Illness
Car accidents
For teenagers, some common behavioral responses to trauma can include:
Withdrawing from friends/family
Poor grades/loss of interest in school
Extreme emotional reactions
Self-harm and suicidal thoughts
Trauma In Adulthood
As we become adults, we are often forced to face the world and all of its challenges, whether we feel prepared or not. “Adulting” is hard, and you would be hard-pressed to find an adult who won't agree that they struggle to get everything done. In addition to working, paying bills, and managing your health, adulthood has plenty of natural stressors, including common traumatic events like:
Educational trauma
Abusive partners
Financial trauma
Job loss
Major life shift/changes
When adults experience trauma, they may express some of the following behaviors:
Depression
Anxiety
Poor emotional regulation
Irritability
Trauma Among Seniors
Unfortunately, many seniors struggle with their mental health, often due to untreated trauma from their past, or struggles to adjust to the present. Senior citizens can also experience new trauma, though there isn’t much information out there about trauma late in life. Some examples of trauma seniors may experience include:
Medical trauma/malpractice
Neglect
Isolation
Death of friends and family
Financial abuse
Seniors that have experienced trauma display many of the same behaviors shown by younger individuals. Depression, anxiety, irritability, and more can appear at any time as a result of long-lasting trauma, though these symptoms can also be triggered by late-life mental health conditions.
Treatment for Trauma at Any Age
People can experience trauma at any time, but thankfully research shows that we are always oriented towards healing and self-righting, which means healing can happen at any age, as well! At Whole Self Therapy, we treat patients from every walk of life and at every stage in life. Whether you want help unpacking and resolving old pain, or need to work through something that happened recently, count on our team of dedicated therapists to help guide you through.