Trauma

The Concept of trauma, as we know it today, can be traced back to the First World War when the survivor phenomenon known as ‘shell shock’ demonstrated the harmful effects of experiencing catastrophic events (e.g. war, assault, rape, accidents, injury and witnessing death). This kind of disordered behaviour and thinking, which we now know as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), was therefore founded on the experience of normally developed individuals who have been unable to process or integrate a sudden, usually single or time limited, traumatic event and the associated emotions. Complex trauma however, is a fairly recent concept, indicating a growing understanding of trauma-related disorders. Complex trauma involves repeated and long-term traumatic experiences that are laid down in childhood, usually involving a failure of parents to protect and nurture the child (Andreasen, 2010).