trauma & ptsd
What's Happening
Something traumatic happened in your life. Maybe it was a one time event or perhaps there have been many things over the years that have had a lasting impact on your psychological and emotional health and you’re ready to take the next steps to make things better for yourself.
SINGLE-EVENT TRAUMA
Some examples of severe single-event traumas include: any type of abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, psychological abuse, domestic abuse, intimate partner violence, sexual abuse, rape or molestation, war, assault or being attacked, major vehicle accidents, homocide/suicide of a family member, near-death experiences. In some cases people are able to recover quickly but more commonly we see that in situations of severe trauma it takes a trained professional to help the person to stabilize from what’s happened. No therapy will ever eliminate the bad event(s) from happening but there are ways to achieve greater personal peace from within; to accept what’s happened and rebalance in a new way.
COMPLEX TRAUMA
There is also a category of trauma referred to as complex-trauma. Complex trauma is a category of diagnoses that we use to describe someone who may have experienced multiple traumatic events or experiences over the course of their lifetime. Complex trauma may also include repeated or recurrent exposure to situations that aren’t considered life-threatening. Such events may include: parental neglect, emotional withholding by a loved one/parent/spouse, victim-blaming, harassment, bullying, isolation, infidelity (maybe 1 time, maybe recurrent), chronic rejection/abandonment, workplace traumas and many others. In many of these cases there is no threat to ones life, but the repeated and recurring exposure changes the way you feel towards yourself and the world around you.
SYMPTOMS & PTSD
People report a wide range of perceptions and experiences: recurring thoughts of the event, intrusive memories of what happened, changes in personality, increased worry/anxiety about the event happening again, panic or hypervigilance, emotional reactivity, anger, uncertainty within yourself, self-doubt, senses of insecurity in familiar/unfamiliar situations, guilt or shame about what happened, fears that it was your fault or that others blame you or depression. When a person experiences a single-event trauma, or complex trauma, they may develop what is called Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. A formal diagnosis of PTSD is only applied when a licensed professional has completed an assessment and determined whether or not criteria are met.
PREVALENCE & THERAPEUTIC PROGRESSION
Trauma-related diagnoses are prevalent in today’s world. In your first session we’ll spend about 45 minutes talking to get a brief outline of how trauma has been impacting you mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. After the first 3-5 sessions, you’ll be given more room to just openly explore what’s happening for you that week, month or in your life as a whole. My sessions often move into the deeper personal themes of your life and what’s truly keeping people stuck. No matter what direction the therapy takes, I’ll be there as a resource in the room to help you work through it…it’s all connected and I’ll help you draw those connections over time. It’s important to remember that the session time is yours to use as you wish, whether that’s to talk about a specific event that happened, recent stressors in your life or to go deeper into something you’ve really wanted to talk about from your past.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE ROOM
- What you can expect from me: Trust, respect, patience, honesty, commitment to you and your process.
- What I expect from you: Trust, respect, patience, honesty, commitment to you and your own process.
- The truth is that we’re all vulnerable to traumas. Therapy can help if it’s something that you want to do for yourself. Contact me today to set up an appointment.
