Fact #1: Categories of Trauma include:

o Natural Disasters

o Personal Loss

o Health Crisis

o Victimization (physical or emotional abuse, neglect, rape or sexual assault, etc.)

o Crime and Violence (both property and personal crime)

o Terrorism and war.

Remember: Witnesses of these events can suffer trauma symptoms at varying levels of serverity, the

same as the victim.

Fact #2: Normal Protective Reactions to traumatic stress include:

o Initial shock and denial

o Feelings become intensified, moods may be unpredictable

o Change in thought and behavior patterns can include flashbacks, difficulty with concentration,

becoming easily confused, hyper-vigilance, disruption in patterns of eating and sleeping

o Victims of trauma may have emotional reactions to anniversaries, reminders and other triggers

o Strain in interpersonal relationships

o Stress related physical problems such as headaches, gastrointestinal distress, psychosomatic complaints

(prolonged or intense symptoms may require professional assistance!)

FACT #3: Research shows that at varying times after a traumatic incident, even 6-to-18 months later:

o The victims of the traumatic event may begin to drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes or use drugs to self-

medicate

o The "use" behavior of people who previously drank or used drugs may increase in quantity and frequency

o People in recovery from an addiction may relapse back into the disease as a result of traumatic incidents

o People taking prescription medications may increase the dosage or otherwise misuse them

FACT #4: Protective Factors that have a positive effect on healing from a traumatic event include:

o Attending to immediate needs of physical shelter, and physical and emotional safety

o Strong bonding with family

o Linkages with the community - friends and neighbors - and community resources

o Connecting, or reconnecting, with the Faith Community - faith in a Higher Power, and/or experiencing

a greater understanding, meaning and purpose of life

o Resiliency, having Coping Skills, and having Control, Hope and Inspiration

o Return to a healthy and balanced pattern of both eating and sleeping after the initial period of shock

o Reaching out to support groups and for professional assistance

      REMEMBER: No matter which type of trauma is experienced, the use of alcohol and street drugs - or misuse of prescription drugs, can severely exacerbate the symptoms. They can intensify emotions, increase the suffering, fears and anxieties, disrupt sleep and eating patterns, and lead to poor decision making and further damage.

     Instead of reaching for a drink, cigarette or drug... help people to reach out to a friend, family member, to a faith community, or to a support group or for professional assistance.