Trauma and PTSD: Understanding Symptoms and Support

17th June, 2025    |    By  Black Dog Insititute    |     35

Trauma is an emotional response to events that involve serious harm, injury, or danger. For some people, trauma may result from a single event, while for others, frequent exposure—especially in high-risk professions—can lead to heightened mental health risks.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) occurs when the brain’s internal alarm system stays activated, even after the danger has passed. Symptoms may include intrusive thoughts, heightened alertness, avoidance, and negative emotions.

This video explores the impacts of trauma and PTSD, how they manifest, and what support is available to help individuals cope and recover.

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Also check the related topics:  

Traumatic incidents

Video provided by Black Dog Insititute

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Video Transcription

We all face a range of challenging life events. Some of these challenges can help us develop and grow. But when we experience or witness an event that risks serious injury, harm, or death to ourselves or others, we can be said to have undergone a trauma.

For some of us, these may be relatively uncommon or a single event—like an assault or a car crash. For others, especially those of us who work in certain jobs, our work can result in frequent exposure to such events, heightening our health risk.

We all have a limited capacity for coping with stress. Over time, our stress bucket can get filled by different experiences until eventually, it overflows. When this happens, we might have difficulty coping, and we can experience symptoms such as

  • Intrusive thoughts
  • Unwanted memories of a trauma
  • Feelings of anxiety, guilt, anger, or sadness

When these responses last longer than a month, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) becomes a risk.

Generally, when we face danger, the part of the brain that acts as an alarm system—our fight, flight, or freeze response—is activated. When this happens, our nervous system sends signals to regulate our bodily functions, preparing us to escape from danger.

When danger is no longer present, our bodies usually rebalance, flicking off the switch to our internal alarm system so it stops going off.

With PTSD, the switch remains “on” and the alarm system remains active—even when the stressor is no longer present. This can result in four different kinds of symptoms:

1. Reliving symptoms

Nightmares, intrusive thoughts, or memories.

2. Negative thoughts or feelings

Including guilt, anger, anxiety, pessimism, or emotional detachment.

3. Heightened physiological arousal

Feeling on edge, hypervigilance to danger, being easily startled, or difficulty sleeping.

4. Avoidance of trauma reminders

Avoiding people, places, or situations that remind you of the trauma—or trying not to think about it at all, including through drug and alcohol misuse.

Of course, not everyone experiences all of these symptoms, and they can vary in intensity.

If you are feeling these symptoms, help is available. 💛