Mental health and gender-based violence 2016 | Page 46

36 What is trauma ? What makes an experience traumatic ?

TO THE TRAINER
PART II : THE TRAINING

What is trauma ? What makes an experience traumatic ?

Aims . To explain trauma and responses to it , and share understanding of them .
TEACHING INSTRUCTION .
Section 5 of Part I ( A brief introduction to ‘ trauma ’, page 13 ) can be used to present the concept of trauma . Either read it aloud or draw on it as background material .
Tell the group that , in order to convey what trauma is , and the psychological significance of trauma and trauma reactions , we will tell stories using metaphors . In particular , the story and metaphor of the Butterfly Woman will play a crucial role in the training . It can also be used by helpers to explain trauma and trauma reactions to survivors .
When you tell the story , do so as vividly as possible . Encourage the participants to identify with the metaphors .
Make sure to underline the following aspects of trauma
• Survivors of trauma may behave very differently after the event .
• Events associated with trauma reactions are often intense , grave and disruptive .
• The reactions that survivors show initially are survival responses .
• Traumatic events affect people in different ways in the longer term . Bear in mind that stories are metaphors .
EXERCISE
Exercise 4 . What makes an event traumatic ? This exercise is designed to clarify
• What makes a traumatic event special .
• Whether trauma is associated with specific cultural reactions .
• The effects of trauma .
Explain that a traumatic event is so overwhelming that people lose control . They feel helpless and experience extreme fear . Some will flee ; others will not be able to move . It is an extreme event that generates exceptional human responses . Encourage the participants to reflect on your description of trauma , using their personal experience to do so . Ask them whether the reactions described are familiar to them , and whether they can describe other reactions that are specific to the local culture .