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I don't understand how "trauma is universal" is a reasonable interpretation of the facts that are related there. I'm always wary of an argument that hinges on t

I don't understand how "trauma is universal" is a reasonable interpretation of the facts that are related there. I'm always wary of an argument that hinges on the meaning of a word being changed (the subtle expansion of "trauma"; the standard definition being called "acute trauma" instead), but in this case I don't think even the expanded definition of trauma supports the conclusion that trauma is a "near universal human experience". The ACE study mentioned ([0]) suggests that about 2/3 of people have 1 or more ACE, but after looking at the definition of ACE they used, it appears to use a significantly weaker definition of trauma than even the expanded one given explicitly in the article: it includes having a parent with a mental health issue, having a chronic health condition while young, or being chronically separated from a parent (due to eg divorce). Further, it looks like there is quite a bit of clustering: people with ACEs that qualify as classic traumas tend to have several. Perhaps trauma is much more pervasive than I thought, but it looks to me like the definition of trauma was changed quite significantly to make the claim hold. [0] https://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/ttb_aces_consequences.pdf https://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/ttb_aces_consequences.pd... There is more info on the wiki page here as well: [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adverse_Childhood_Experiences_Study https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adverse_Childhood_Experience...

tomhoward 7y ago
I agree with that, and held back from including it in my original comment to avoid letting it be too long. Through the subconscious healing work I've done, few of the events/issues I've processed are ones that I would characterise as trauma. Little of it involves abuse, violence, separation or anything else that fits the conventional definition of trauma. But it is a snowballing history of unpleasant life experiences, which all compounds and steadily amplifies one's underlying sense of anxiety, fear and distrust of themselves and the world, along with the severity of physiological symptoms.
- kqr 7y ago
  > But it is a snowballing history of unpleasant life experiences, which all compounds and steadily amplifies one's underlying sense of anxiety, fear and distrust of themselves and the world This fits in so much better with my understanding of how humans learn other things as well: through many tiny increments, not in one sudden dramatic event.
crawfordcomeaux 7y ago
My partner and I are now treating anyone who feels bad in response to something that isn't harmful as suffering an emotional flashback from unhealed Complex PTSD. We're doing this because most cultures in America, not to mention most systems, are denying some universal need. The chronic denial of a need is traumatizing and can be something adults without ACEs can easily experience by simply not knowing something is a need or not knowing how to meet it. Here's a list of universal needs I tend to refer to: https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/needs-inventory https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/needs-inventory Here's a list my friends are building: http://www.learnyourneeds.com http://www.learnyourneeds.com https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_post-traumatic_stress_disorder https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_post-traumatic_stres...
palimpsests 7y ago
trauma is universal in that is very common for humans to experience highly stressful life events that they have some difficulty fully metabolizing. this incomplete metabolization is trauma. the event or events are not the trauma. developmental trauma is an epidemic in western society - this is what the presence of ACEs screen for. I don't think 100% of humans are explicitly traumatized but most humans will have some degree of hypo- and hyper-arousal type activation of the central nervous system in response to different situations and their history. some much more subtle than others.

tomhoward 7y ago

I agree with that, and held back from including it in my original comment to avoid letting it be too long. Through the subconscious healing work I've done, few of the events/issues I've processed are ones that I would characterise as trauma. Little of it involves abuse, violence, separation or anything else that fits the conventional definition of trauma. But it is a snowballing history of unpleasant life experiences, which all compounds and steadily amplifies one's underlying sense of anxiety, fear and distrust of themselves and the world, along with the severity of physiological symptoms.

kqr 7y ago
> But it is a snowballing history of unpleasant life experiences, which all compounds and steadily amplifies one's underlying sense of anxiety, fear and distrust of themselves and the world This fits in so much better with my understanding of how humans learn other things as well: through many tiny increments, not in one sudden dramatic event.

crawfordcomeaux 7y ago

My partner and I are now treating anyone who feels bad in response to something that isn't harmful as suffering an emotional flashback from unhealed Complex PTSD. We're doing this because most cultures in America, not to mention most systems, are denying some universal need. The chronic denial of a need is traumatizing and can be something adults without ACEs can easily experience by simply not knowing something is a need or not knowing how to meet it. Here's a list of universal needs I tend to refer to: https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/needs-inventory https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/needs-inventory Here's a list my friends are building: http://www.learnyourneeds.com http://www.learnyourneeds.com https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_post-traumatic_stress_disorder https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_post-traumatic_stres...

palimpsests 7y ago

trauma is universal in that is very common for humans to experience highly stressful life events that they have some difficulty fully metabolizing. this incomplete metabolization is trauma. the event or events are not the trauma. developmental trauma is an epidemic in western society - this is what the presence of ACEs screen for. I don't think 100% of humans are explicitly traumatized but most humans will have some degree of hypo- and hyper-arousal type activation of the central nervous system in response to different situations and their history. some much more subtle than others.