Vicarious Trauma

We experience stress when we are in a situation that feels more demanding than what we are able to cope with in that moment. Extreme stress can lead to trauma, which is the lasting impact in our body, thoughts and memories, behaviour and world view.

Trauma is our unique experience of an event, or series of events, rather than the event itself (trauma is what happens within us, not to us).

Trauma significantly impacts brain functioning – which includes areas of your brain that are designed for processing emotions, threats and memory; and this can lead to an impaired ability to make decisions and regulate your emotions.

Vicarious trauma recognises that we do not have to go through the same traumatic event as someone in order to experience a trauma response to it ourselves [1].

Instead, this can happen through repeated interaction with people who have experienced trauma. It is through connecting with others and hearing their stories that we onboard some of these impacts.

Within the context of visiting this means that through connecting with people who are detained, visitors may experience signs of vicarious trauma over time. This is a normal response and a human vulnerability rather than an individual weakness – your brain and body connect with those of the people around you.

Content Warning: Please note that this video contains mentions of suicide and bereavement

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1. This is a link to a study: "Beneath the surface: An exploration of neurobiological alterations in therapists working with trauma."