POST #1: The Role of Witnessing & Re-witnessing of Trauma

    The world is constantly evolving just as our response to, resilience and perceptions of trauma. Exposure to and experiences of trauma contribute to mental health disorders with the most common symptom being posttraumatic stress disorder, however, our bodies variably respond in several ways, including physical (physiological), psychological, emotional, and social (Bell & Robinson, 2013). Statistics show that traumatic exposure is more frequently encountered, as approximately 80% of Americans experience and or witness trauma at least once in their lifetime (van den Berk-Clark, 2018).  

Trauma is non-clinically defined as an event, (experienced or witnessed firsthand) of physical and emotional threats and injury. The psychological definition of trauma states it is an emotional response to a natural disaster, “exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence by directly experiencing the traumatic event(s), (or) witnessing, in person, the traumatic event(s)”; however, what is not yet incorporated in this definition is the impact of re-witnessing trauma (Mikal-Flynn et al., 2018). Re-witnessing trauma is regarded as a third-hand (and all subsequent) encounters whether in-person or virtually, however, with consideration to the frequent consumption of social media, we can conclude that social media undoubtedly plays a role in how easily we access and the frequency at which we encounter trauma (in the format of deaths, incidents of bullying, natural disasters, racism, the excessively beaten or murders in the process) as it’s being circulated via photo, recorded video or live-streaming (Hjorth et al., 2011). Due to these frequent encounters of trauma via social media, we often fail to associate trauma appropriately, allowing ourselves to function within trauma, without consideration for the gravity of its damaging impact. Therefore, great consideration should be had for the rate that social media consumption engulfs us in traumatic experiences. 

Examples of Symptom Presentation & Struggles Associated with Unaddressed Symptoms

            Psychology research supports the notion that experiences of trauma prompt long- and short-term impairment(Giladi & Bell, 2013). As previously noted, the most common symptom of trauma exposure is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), however, again, our bodies variably respond in several ways (Bell & Robinson, 2013). Therefore, other symptoms as a result of trauma exposure include anxiety, vulnerability, depression, withdrawal, avoidance (in form of drug/alcohol abuse), acts, and or attempts of suicide (Akter & Deeba, 2022; Giladi & Bell, 2013).

Positive Behavioral Responses to Trauma (Tools for Healthy Behaviors)

Symbolic interaction theories suggest that humans assign meanings and attitudes according to assumed or anticipated definitions based on the context in which observed or experienced and apply the same meanings to everyone who may experience a similar situation, without consideration to the potential for individualized experiences (Askan et al., 2009). Sadly, if we operate under this notion, we don’t give ourselves room to proactively recognize that symptoms manifest differently from individual to individual. To ensure that we are establishing and maintaining positive behavioral responses, we need to remember to be mindful of the symptoms that illustrate the impact and listen to our bodies. Similarly, seek therapy in those instances where we may be unable to negate these negative behaviors on our own. And don’t be afraid to recognize the behaviors in others and encourage vulnerability to discuss the challenges. We are more inclined to address illness and challenges proactively if we don’t feel alone in our experiences.

Proactively shifting perception of what is trauma, how we encounter trauma, and the symptoms that may arise is the very difference between the present disconnect between the understanding of actual resilience versus resilience enacted as avoidance and or numbness (Garrett, 2022). Enabling resilience through self-reliance is critical, therefore we should utilize this blog as a resource for information that supports realistic perspectives in the development of healthy response patterns to traumatic exposure (Garrett, 2022; Herring et al., 2013). This non-biased approach allows us to take therapy in our hands, by way of identifying and utilizing tools that work best for us to tackle trauma in a way that diverts serious psychological diagnosis individually (e.g. PTSD, mood disorders, etc.; Engel-Rebitzer et al., 2017; Garrett, 2022). 

Conclusion

Generally, social media exposure to violent content has concrete psychological implications, as it’s noted that witnessing and re-witnessing these events do indeed intensify anxiety, triggering and or maintaining posttraumatic stress (or PTSD; Goodwin et al., 2013; Jones et al., 2016).  As we continue to diversify into a more self-sufficient world, we certainly need to consider how trauma exposure impairs us, and and how desensitization from frequent consumption manifests and presents (Garrett, 2022). Proactively and intentionally understanding trauma and the role we play in reinforcing and prolonging symptoms due to a lack of recognizing and addressing symptoms quickly is vital to understand that although we are enabled to cope by way of learning to self-regulate, define and compartmentalize traumatic exposure as “normal”, we need to recognize the long-term impairment it may yield in order to recognize the symptoms early and seek support to negate prolonged challenges (Duffy, 2021; Garrett, 2022).

References

Aksan, N., Kısac, B., Aydın, M., & Demirbuken, S. (2009). Symbolic interaction theory. Procedia Social and Behavioral Science, 1, 902–904.

Akter, F., & Deeba, F. (2022). Psychological Reactions to Different Types of Gender-Based Violence in Women Survivors of Violence in the Context of a Developing Country. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(21/22), NP19961-NP19982. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605211047966

Bell, C. H., & Robinson III, E. H. (2013). Shared Trauma in Counseling: Information and Implications for Counselors. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 35(4), 310–323. https://doi.org/10.17744/mehc.35.4.7v33258020948502

Duffy, F. (2021). Weber’s Interpretive Sociology. Salem Press Encyclopedia.

Engel-Rebitzer, E., Bovin, M. J., Black, S. K., Rosen, R. C., Keane, T. M., & Marx, B. P. (2017). A longitudinal examination of peritraumatic emotional responses and their association with posttraumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder among veterans. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation : The Official Journal of the International Society for the Study of Dissociation (ISSD), 18(5), 679–692. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2016.1267683

Garrett, A. (2022). Assignment: Social Change Blog, Week Three Assignment. Submitted to Walden University.

Garrett, A. (2022). Assignment: Social Change Blog, Week Five Assignment. Submitted to Walden University.

Giladi, L., & Bell, T. S. (2013). Protective factors for intergenerational transmission of trauma among second and third generation Holocaust survivors. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 5(4), 384–391. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0028455   

Goodwin, R., Palgi, Y., & Hamama-Raz, B.-E. Y. M. (2013). In the eye of the storm or the bullseye of the media: Social media use during Hurricane Sandy as a predictor of post-traumatic stress. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 47(8), 1099–1100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2013.04.006

Herring, S., Spangaro, J., Lauw, M., & McNamara, L. (2013). The Intersection of Trauma, Racism, and Cultural Competence in Effective Work with Aboriginal People: Waiting for Trust. Australian Social Work, 66(1), 104–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/0312407X.2012.697566 

Hjorth, L., & Kim, K.-H. Y. (2011). Good grief: the role of social mobile media in the 3.11 earthquake disaster in Japan. Digital Creativity, 22(3), 187–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/14626268.2011.604640

Jones, N. M., Wojcik, S. P., Sweeting, J., & Silver, R. C. (2016). Tweeting negative emotion: An investigation of Twitter data in the aftermath of violence on college campuses. Psychological Methods, 21(4), 526–541. https://doi-org/10.1037/met0000099.supp

Mejia-Lancheros, C., Woodhall-Melnik, J., Wang, R., Hwang, S. W., Stergiopoulos, V., & Durbin, A. (2021). Associations of resilience with quality-of-life levels in adults experiencing homelessness and mental illness: a longitudinal study. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 19(1), 74. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12955-021-01713-z

Mikal-Flynn, J., Anderson, L. S., & Hoffman, J. (2018). Posttraumatic Growth and MetaHabilitation in Recreational Therapy Practice: A Strengths-Based Pathway to Recovery. Therapeutic Recreation Journal, 52(3), 269. https://doi.org/10.18666/TRJ-2018-V52-I3-8675

van den Berk-Clark, C., Myerson, J., Green, L., & Grucza, R. A. (2018). Past trauma and future choices: Differences in discounting in low-income, urban African Americans. Psychological Medicine, 48(16), 2702–2709. doi:10.1017/S0033291718000326