Work Trauma: How to navigate this very real phenomenon
Trauma is a term that is used to describe an emotional response to a negative event or experience. Many people are familiar with the concept of trauma related to survival after terrible, life-altering events such as accidents, crimes, natural disasters, abuse, or death; however, trauma is also a natural, adaptive reaction to long term negative stress, anxiety, or unpredictable daily experiences.
In the context of career and work, trauma is often a completely normal response to situations such as:
Working prolonged periods in a highly stressful job
Experiencing long term job insecurity
Experiencing harmful, abusive, or toxic relationships in the workplace
Having to “mask” some part of your true self
Engaging in projects or tasks that violate your inherent values in some way.
In fact, working against one's values is so harmful that there is a term for this as well: moral injury.
What is moral injury?
While first described in the context of veterans returning from war, moral injury refers to the long term psychological, social or spiritual impacts of engaging in acts that violate one’s deeply held values. Clinicians and healthcare workers more generally may be more prone to this working in a field where some decisions are literally life or death; however, this type of trauma may also arise from more generic situations such as having to layoff staff or cut programs that are benefitting a population but are not profitable.
Both trauma generally and moral injury have been linked to post-traumatic stress conditions, anxiety, and depression.
The impacts of trauma can be emotional and physical. Physical impacts may include fatigue, pain, headaches, nausea / gastrointestinal issues, and more; emotional impacts may include mood changes, detachment, trouble with relationships, and more.
3 ways to heal from work trauma
Experiencing work trauma can definitely keep us further from our joy — but the good news is there are many tools available to heal. Here are some immediate steps you can take if you’re struggling to cope.
Find a way to take a break
You need space and time. While it's not possible for everyone or in every situation to literally walk away, most of us can find smaller ways to take back or set new boundaries that remove us from the most significant factors that are causing harm at work. This may be taking some time off, removing yourself from certain projects or meetings, considering options for internal or lateral transfers, logging off earlier or logging on later, or even doing a bit of temporary “quiet quitting.”
Reconnect with things and people that used to bring joy
Many people experiencing the impact of trauma react by disengaging. This is a natural response to the daily threats you’ve been experiencing! However, it also means you've likely stopped doing things lately like meeting up with friends, exercising, or engaging in hobbies you used to enjoy. Scheduling and doing pleasant activities is known to boost mood immediately, so choose something - anything, no matter how small! - and follow through. You’ll soon start to build momentum.
Seek support
While it's important to do so at a comfortable and safe pace, and with the help of a professional, confronting trauma often starts with identifying the underlying actions and triggers that brought you to where you are feeling now. Coaching can be a powerful tool to start to name your thoughts and emotions and activate your inherent potential to heal and design a more fulfilling path forward. For some, therapy may also be a helpful or necessary tool for long-term healing.
If you’d like to explore options for next steps in your own situation, consider booking a complimentary coaching fit call today.
