The Difference Between Trauma and PTSD

What the Emotionally Intelligent Leader Needs to Know

Even if you have been most fortunate to be spared personal loss and grief during the past few years, you will not have escaped the sadness of others’ stories. These past few years have been “heavy” on our mental and emotional health. Empathy fatigue and compassion fatigue test our resilience and our ability to support others. I do worry that the constant assault of traumatic events, personally experienced or witnessed near or from afar, will lead us to being desensitized to trauma.

I wrote about leading with care and compassion in the post, “Leadership, Trauma, and Recovery: Work, Life, and Self” in which I referenced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as being on the rise. Although trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are frequently used interchangeably, there is a difference. This blog explains the subtle difference to assist you in self-leadership and in leading others.

The Difference Between Trauma and PTSD

Emotional Trauma - A Life-Altering Experience

According to the American Psychological Association, trauma is an emotional response to a terrible event. Responses to trauma can be expressed through emotions and/or behaviour and can impede an individual’s ability to function.

The PTSD Association of Canada quotes three requisites of emotional trauma:

1. It is as unexpected as fog on a clear day.
2. It is something you cannot prepare for.
3. It is something that you can do nothing to prevent.

Trauma is time-based and can be experienced more than once by an individual. Trauma can impact anyone and everyone. Trauma can be a life-altering experience.

There is one type of trauma classified as “historical” which is often associated with racial and ethnic population groups (worldwide) who have suffered major intergenerational losses and assaults on their culture and well-being.

Without minimizing any group’s suffering, I respectfully advocate that we acknowledge that there are so many more groups that have suffered. More than I can attempt to list in this blog: gender, sexual preference, to name a few. And, consider how current events have put younger generations at risk of PTSD - truly "historical" trauma.

Consider the “historical” nature of the trauma that we are experiencing and witnessing through current events at this time. Our personal and professional lives are affected regardless of our identification with any group. Current events have and will continue to trigger a rise in PTSD requiring a different kind of leadership.

PTSD - A Longer-Term Condition

PTSD is a longer-term condition that can develop as a result of trauma, whether experienced or witnessed. But not all traumatic events lead to PTSD.

The PTSD Association of Canada describes PTSD as “a lasting consequence of traumatic ordeals that cause intense fear, helplessness or horror, such as a sexual or physical assault, the unexpected death of a loved one, a divorce, loss of a job, and accident, war, or natural disaster and many more.”

PTSD is the condition of re-experiencing the traumatic event through flashbacks, dreams, and thoughts. PTSD can be experienced by families, military personnel, emergency personnel and rescue workers, first responders, and journalists – and that’s the short list.

Common Signs and Symptoms of PTSD

• Deep sense of helplessness
• Avoidance of people, places, or memories of the event
• Fear of normal everyday activities and loss of interests in pleasurable activities including family and friends
• Sleep disturbances
• Abnormal fear and feelings of devastation and vulnerability
• Negative thoughts about self and the world
• Being easily startled
• Feelings of guilt or blame for the event
• Outbursts of anger
• Panic attacks
• Constant state of irritability, agitation, arousal
• Difficulty with concentration or memories, or memory loss

According to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health, PTSD symptoms can begin as early as three months post trauma or years after, occur for more than a month, and interfere with work, relationships, and daily tasks.

According to PTSD Association of Canada, the good news is that PTSD is treatable. Awareness is key to accurate diagnosis leading to treatment and eventually, healing, growth, and recovery. However, if left untreated, PTSD can become worse with further long-term effects including addiction, chronic pain, hypertension or physical maladies: self-injury; overwhelming fear of death; compulsiveness; personality changes; and self-destructive incidents, to name a few.

Our Leadership Role in Supporting Recovery

A diagnosis of PTSD can be done by a trained medical professional, but with greater understanding of the condition, we can effectively support the recovery process of those we love, those we lead, and those with whom we work. We can begin with self-leadership and then lead and support others.

I’ll will continue on this theme in my next post.

In the meantime, what are you thinking? It's a heavy subject at the moment, I know. How are you supporting those affected by trauma? How are you being supported? What about post-traumatic stress? 

Is this a conversation you would like to continue?

Would you like to explore the connections I make with this topic and emotional intelligence? You can reach me on LinkedIn. Or click to Get in Touch.

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Resources and Credit: I am grateful for the information provided by PTSD Association of Canada. Founded in November 2006, the PTSD Association of Canada (PTSD) is the first stand-alone PTSD Association in North America.

I credit PTSD Association of Canada with much of what I have written in this blog. Some content is direct from the website. I have included direct quotes and have paraphrased when appropriate. Please browse the site for quality resources including this short list: articles, research, coping strategies, veterans, teens, post traumatic growth, and an invitation to get involved and/or donate.

To support PTSD awareness and the development and distribution of educational materials, I have pledged my donation.