Trauma

Trauma is the emotional and physical response to deeply distressing events that overwhelm a person’s ability to cope. It can come from experiences like violence, accidents, loss, or ongoing stress, and its effects can show up in the body, emotions, and behaviour long after the event has passed. Trauma isn’t a sign of weakness — it’s a human reaction to something that felt threatening or unsafe. 

With the right support, people can heal and regain a sense of safety and control in their lives.

Websites / Helplines

• Blue Knot Foundation – National Centre of Excellence for Complex Trauma

Blue Knot is Australia’s leading organisation for adults impacted by complex trauma. It provides support, fact sheets, training, and a national helpline.

• Phoenix Australia – Australian Guidelines for PTSD, ASD & Complex PTSD (via RACGP)

These are the official Australian clinical guidelines for trauma treatment, endorsed by the RACGP and produced by Phoenix Australia.

• NSW Health – Integrated Trauma‑Informed Care Framework

This is a comprehensive, government‑developed framework explaining trauma, trauma‑informed care, and how services can support healing.

You Tube / TED Talks / Podcasts

• The Power of Vulnerability - Brene Brown

Books

• "The Body Keeps the Score" — Bessel van der Kolk

The most influential trauma book of the last decade. It explains how trauma reshapes the brain, nervous system, memory, and relationships — and why healing requires body‑based approaches like EMDR, yoga, breathwork, and somatic therapies.

• "Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma" — Peter Levine

The foundational book on somatic (body‑based) trauma healing. Levine explains how trauma gets “stuck” in the nervous system and how gentle, body‑focused awareness can release it.

• "What Happened to You?" — Bruce Perry & Oprah Winfrey

A compassionate, conversational book that reframes trauma from “What’s wrong with me?” to “What happened to me?”. It blends neuroscience with real stories and is especially helpful for childhood trauma.