One of the most common reactions to trauma is to avoid thinking about what happened. This may include avoiding anything that reminds the student of the event (e.g. places, people, smells, etc.).

It is not recommended that people immediately force themselves to address everything that reminds them of the incident, as this can be overwhelming in certain cases, but that they focus on avoiding avoidance when possible.

This can be particularly helpful to utilize the support of a mental health professional. If trauma remains unaddressed, it is unlikely it will go away and may impact the person in certain ways in the future.

One way to avoid avoidance is to journal your thoughts and feelings. This can allow the person to reflect on these issues in a safer space.

As with any emotion, there is often something that triggers the feeling of distress related to a traumatic event. Some common triggers can be related to things that remind you of the event, including places, people, smell, and others.

There are many more, of course, but it is important for you to determine what your personal triggers are. One way you can do this is to think back at some of the more recent times that you became very distressed and try to notice if there are any similarities with those situations.

Identifying what your effective personal coping skills are can be a good strategy for coping with trauma. For anxiety, there may be activities that you engage in that help take your mind off of what is worrying you.

Some common coping strategies for distress are exercise, talking to a supportive friend or family member, or listening to music. It is important to note that there may be times that a preferred coping skill, such as going for a run when it is dark outside, may also increase distress.

In these cases, individuals can decide whether or not it makes sense in that moment to use that skill. There are more aspects to identifying what coping strategies work for you and to learn more about coping, follow this link.

Using deep, diaphragmatic breathing can help with feeling distress. In general, when we begin to experience the emotion of anxiety, particularly as it relates to trauma, our body begins to react physiologically.

Sometimes this results in our body going into full ‘fight or flight’ mode, where we have many intense physical reactions, many of which are described above in the signs and symptoms section. Using deep breathing can help us calm down and feel more relaxed.

This can be done through the use of apps, biofeedback equipment, or other means. To learn more, please look at our deep breathing section. If you are interested in learning more about biofeedback specifically, please go to our biofeedback page here.