Traumatic events in adolescence: ruptures and constructions

Abstract

The paper discusses adolescence from the perspective of the traumatic, understood not only as extreme events but also as silences, absences, and failures of symbolization. Through three narratives — a boy overwhelmed by bodily loss of control, a group of young people experiencing social violence, and adolescence in the digital age — the subjective experience of growing up is articulated with psychoanalytic theory. It demonstrates how bodily changes, the emergence of sexuality, and environmental demands can weaken psychic cohesion and reactivate archaic experiences, creating space for the traumatic. At the same time, it highlights the creative potential of adolescence and the importance of the presence of others — parents, community, analysts — as containers capable of providing listening, symbolization, and reintegration. The text proposes that trauma in adolescence, inevitable to some extent, can be transformed into a developmental opportunity when it finds a space of recognition and bonding.