Symptoms of Trauma

         According to Dr. Peter Levine, "the nervous system compensates for being in a state of self-perpetuating arousal by setting up a chain of adaptations that eventually bind and organize the energy into 'symptoms.' These adaptations function as a safety valve to the nervous system. The first symptoms of trauma usually appear shortly after the event that engendered them. Others will develop over time."

         Following are groups of symptoms that tend to show up in the following order. This is however a generalization. Symptoms in the second group may well show up in the first stages. Symptoms in the second group may also show up along with symptoms in the third group, etc. Some symptoms could well be included in all lists. There is no fixed rule that determines which symptom the organism will chose to enlist, or when it will choose to enlist it.

         According to Dr. Levine, "not all of these symptoms are caused exclusively by trauma, nor has everyone who exhibits one or more of these symptoms been traumatized. The flu, for instance, can cause malaise and abdominal discomfort that is similar to trauma symptoms. However, there is a difference; symptoms produced by the flu generally go away in a few days. Those produced by trauma do not. The symptoms of trauma can be stable (ever-present), unstable (will come and go), or they can hide for decades. Generally, these symptoms do not occur individually, but in constellations. "