Psychological Trauma

Abstract

Just as physical trauma injuries the body, psychological trauma can injure the psyche and bring emotional problems. The common denominator of all traumatic situations is stress that generates terror and helplessness. The symptoms caused by psychological trauma are like neurotic disorders: Victims are bothered by emotions that are unpleasant and alien to their personality. They may be anxious, have nightmares, or have physical symptoms with no identifiable physical cause. Such problems can be produced by natural disasters, accidents, crimes, or fires. However, it has been in war that psychological trauma has received the greatest attention. Some soldiers had physical symptoms such as inability to speak, deafness, tremulousness, and paralysis. Others had amnesia or other psychological symptoms such as uncontrolled crying or incapacitating terror (Nichols & Zax, 1977).