Not all traumatic events lead to the development of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and trauma is a subjective experience. Either way, after a traumatic event (or a series of events), you may not like feel like yourself. Your mood may become depressed, agitated, or jittery, and you may avoid people, places, or experiences that remind you of the event.
In the course of psychotherapy, we’ll assess your trauma through the lens of the ‘3 Es’- the event, the experience, and the effect. Depending on many factors- including age, attachment style, support during and after the event, one may recover quickly or one may develop a serious mental health condition called PTSD.
When PTSD develops, the impact can felt throughout a lifetime if it’s left untreated. Using a ‘bottom up approach‘, counseling will help you learn the skills to necessary to restore your mind and body to a sense of safety, and you will regain control of your life again. Integrating your body, or somatic experience, during the therapy session may be the first step to recovery and healing. As the body feels more regulated, trauma processing (or talking about the trauma) may, or may not, follow. Trauma therapy requires trust with your therapist and I will always follow your lead.
Common triggers for the onset of PTSD include car accidents, emotional or physical abuse, violent assaults, infidelity and betrayal trauma, sexual assault, or seeking asylum. It is common, yet distressing, to be triggered and flooded by images, nightmares, or memories of the event. These symptoms can make you feel frozen, helpless, and scared. If you have experienced a number of traumas in your life, you may be experiencing C-PTSD or complex-PTSD.
Symptoms of Trauma
- feeling as if the traumatic event is still occuring, even though the immediate danger has passed
- nightmares, often repetitive in theme
- flashbacks to the event
- insomnia due to fear or nightmares
- hypervigilance
- sweaty palms, elevated heart rate, palpitations of the heart
- poor memory and poor concentration
- irritability
- panic
- dissociation from your body or losing track of time or ‘spacing out’
- avoiding certain places, people or situations
Let’s talk. Book a session.
If you believe you are suffering from PTSD or if you have a history of trauma, reach out to me. Mental health counseling can be incredibly beneficial to you as you learn to heal. Psychotherapy will incorporate talking and somatic, body-centered, grounding techniques to help you feel safe in your body again. Let’s connect.
Picking the right therapist when you have experienced trauma is vitally important; read my Google reviews here.
What to expect
We will meet virtually 1x per week for 50 minutes. You may be in therapy for several months or a year. The length and frequency of your commitment to therapy will depend on many things, and there is no ‘one size fits all’ formula. We will work together to improve your mood, heal from your past, and achieve your treatment goals. Questions? Let’s connect.
