Trauma and Health

Long-term health effects of trauma. Inevitable: yes or no?

It has been known for a long time that victims of trauma, especially childhood trauma, are also more likely to experience a myriad of health issues. Now, a new study published by the American Heart Association found an enhanced incidence of cardiovascular disease among women who had experienced childhood abuse, especially repeated sexual molestation and rape. Children who experienced severe physical abuse were slightly less affected, but still significantly so. In this incidence the main culprit was identified as significant weight gain and obesity among women who had been sexually abused.

Sadly, therapists who work with severely abused and traumatized clients often see those clients have physical ailments such as autoimmune disease, gastrointestinal issues, cancer, asthma, cardiovascular disease, COPD, and on and on. We see it so often that it is almost expected before we first meet such a client that there will be health issues as well.

There is a wealth of published material one can find to help explain what happens physically to traumatized people for those who want to read up on the subject. For our purposes here, I am not going to go into depth or use scientific terms to explain the chemical and physiological changes that occur in response to trauma. The focus for this blog entry is simply to attempt to answer the question, “Is there anything you can do about it?”

I believe the short answer to that question is “yes.” To simplify it, think of it this way. If you walk around throughout the day in a state of hypervigilance, nerves on-edge, with muscle tension throughout the body, never able to relax or sit still, and a disturbance of appetite (either lacking or too much), then your body is under attack. At a minimum you will be affected by health issues such as high blood pressure, ulcers, and body aches and pain. Add to that sleep disturbances so you never get the rest you need for optimal physical and mental functioning, and you have a real recipe for medical problems.

Now imagine that you learn coping methods that reduce the constant muscle tension, allow you to relax, reduces hypervigilance, and returns your digestive system to a more normal functioning status. Increased quality and quantity of sleep would in turn improve mental and physical functioning and endurance. A body no longer under the constant attack of tension and stress would have a better functioning immune system that could better fight off diseases and slow down the problems associated with the aging process. So, if you know that you are in the high-risk group described above, take action. Find a way to achieve greater relaxation. Exercise, participate in Yoga classes, learn to meditate, or any number of other healthy activities. Find a good trauma therapist who can help you resolve the issues related to the trauma and abuse. You can take steps to reduce your risk of severe health issues linked to a history of childhood abuse, as well as other types of trauma and suffering.

Mark E. Hankla, MA, LIMHP

This Is SO Not About Football

Following the Penn State news has made it a tough week for lots of us—those who experienced childhood sexual abuse and those who strive to help them heal from the long-term harm caused by that abuse. It’s not just the sexual exploitation, damaging as that is, that harms a child. For many victims who develop post-trauma disorders, it is more than the anguish of being used, raped, humiliated by a perpetrator. The response and non-response of other adults can constitute a betrayal that leaves a decades-long impact.

As satisfying as it may be to hear that one perpetrator has been temporarily removed from the general public, there is no doubt that thousands of serial pedophiles have been allowed to continue abusing kids because they are “pillars of the community,” are well known, would be angry if someone complained. Penn State is one small example of what has happened, and continues to happen every day, when other adults witness, hear about, or suspect child sexual abuse. Otherwise responsible adults walk away, pretend that they did not see or hear, whisper to other adults, worry about the perpetrator’s reputation and their own. Rarely does the non-protective adult speak to that child at all, much less provide comfort or support.

Psychology calls it cognitive dissonance—the psychological disconnect between recognition of the perpetrator as a criminal and the accustomed image of protective parent, loving grandparent, dedicated member of the clergy, conscientious teacher, or devoted Scout leader. We know that those conflicting social images are what cause abused children to think “Everybody knows that he/she is a good person. It must be me. I must deserve this.”

So it’s a good thing that one perpetrator has been arrested and a few enabling adults has been removed from leadership positions. But what about all of the child victims that have not yet been identified, in Pennsylvania and Nebraska and elsewhere? The adults who were once those youngsters? The years of fear and pain that don’t end when a child grows up? It’s a good thing that Penn State took some action. It is not nearly enough.

Sherry Cox