4. Watching/ Reading Media Related To Your Trauma
According to studies conducted by journals of psychological behavior it is rather common for a trauma survivor to induce their own trauma re-experience. This is commonly done through watching and reading content and media that is directly or indirectly linked to their own ordeal. Studies show that this stems from a compulsive need to analyze and dissect the trauma and all factors that led to the ordeal. In many rape cases, survivors tend to feel a great amount of guilt and self-blame, with many choosing to dissect the event in order to identify areas where they could have stopped the incident or prevented it from happening.
Watching or reading content associated with the trauma is also a way “transference”, where the survivor wishes to transfer their own experience to that of a television character. This helps the individual to relive and re-experience the trauma all over again. This is a rather dangerous thing, as often this tends to distort the survivor’s own feelings about their own trauma, sometimes taking on feelings and thoughts that they did not necessarily hold before watching or reading the content.