Four common emotions in trauma are:
1) Terror
2) Rage
3) Shame
4) Sense of failure
In trauma, terror comes from the feeling that we are going to be annihilated (killed) by whatever it is that is attacking us. With high impact traumas such as falls, the “attacker” is the floor (and anything else we hit on the way down). Terror also comes up as a result of the fear that we will fragment (break into pieces) as a result of the trauma.
Rage is invoked in an attempt to protect ourselves (remember the survival response of fight-or-flight). When we are young, this rage is so strong that it can feel like it will not only destroy our attacker, but also us as well. This is very scary and another ingredient in traumatization.
Shame, especially existential shame (shame connected to our existence) means that we can feel like giving up even on life itself. This can lead to a very strong sense of failure. If we are unable to protect ourselves it can feel as if our physiology has “failed”. This is an especially overwhelming experience when the trauma happens when we are very young. A baby is really and truly helpless – there is no way it can protect itself.
All of these emotions are normal and predictable when someone has experienced a traumatic event, although not every person will experience all of them. When dealing with trauma ourselves, or helping someone else who has been traumatized, it is very useful to know that these are common emotions that can be present and to work to release these feelings from staying in the system.
