Connection and Community

Trauma is a term used to describe the challenging emotional consequences that living through a distressing event can have for an individual. Traumatic events can be difficult to define because the same event may be more traumatic for some people than for others. Taumatic events experienced early in life, such as abuse, neglect and disrupted attachment, can often be devastating. As can the Trauma from later life experiences that are out of one’s control, such as a serious accident, being the victim of violence, living through a natural disaster or war, or sudden unexpected loss.

When thoughts and memories of the traumatic event don’t go away or get worse, they may lead to Post traumatic stress Disorder,  which can seriously disrupt a person’s ability to regulate their emotions and maintain healthy relationships.

In the first days and weeks after a traumatic event, people often experience strong feelings of fear, sadness, guilt, anger, or grief. As they begin to make sense of what has happened to them, these feelings usually begin to subside. Most people will recover quite quickly with the support of family and friends. For some people though, a traumatic event can lead to mental health issues such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, alcohol and drug use, as well as impacting on their relationships with family, friends, and at work.

A little conflict is normal in most relationships. Disagreements happen from time to time, even with the people closest to us. Violence, however, is not normal. It is abuse. There is never an excuse for relationship violence. 

Understanding and identifying the forms of relationship violence is the first step in removing yourself from these types of situations. Sometimes abusive behaviors happen in the context of ongoing relationships; other times people become victims of such behaviors from people they know only peripherally or don’t know at all. It is important to know what to look for in order to protect yourself.

Addiction is an inability to stop using a substance or engaging in a behavior even though it is causing psychological and physical harm. The term addiction does not only refer to dependence on substanc. Some addictions also involve an inability to stop partaking in activities such as gambling, eating, or working.

Addiction is a chronic condition that can also result from taking medications.

Personality disorders cause rigid and unhealthy patterns of thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors. They affect how a person perceives and relates to situations and people. This impacts how they form and maintain relationships with family, friends, and intimate partners. People with these disorders tend to repeat patterns in their relationships, which are often volatile, confusing, and difficult.

Domestic violence is an epidemic. While research suggests that men and women employ violence in relationships at roughly equal rates, the damage inflicted on women is far more severe. Nearly half of all homicides of women are committed by a victim’s romantic partner. Globally, the leading cause of nonfatal injuries to women—ahead of car crashes, falls, and accidental poisonings—is domestic violence. 

Intimate partner violence (IPV) encompasses a broad range of behaviours, ranging from emotional and financial abuse to physical and sexual assault. Due to its widespread prevalence and its far-ranging immediate and long-term consequences for victims, their families, and for communities as a whole, IPV is considered a major public health problem (World Health Organization 2017). In addition to the direct impacts on victims, IPV also has broader economic consequences (Peterson et al. 2018) and has been linked to the perpetuation of a cycle of intergenerational violence, leading to additional trauma.