Trauma & PTSD

trauma

“Trauma creates the need for you to recreate yourself.” – Sherri Mandell

Have you experienced a deeply distressing or disturbing event that could not be properly processed at the time? It is important to note that trauma is subjective, it is defined as traumatic if you consider it to be traumatic. The event may have occurred recently or years ago, to which you may be experiencing a delayed response. Are you presently feeling stuck- unable to move through or past this event(s)? Some indications you might be stuck in the mire of a traumatic response include the following symptoms:

  • Anxiety
  • Recurring distressing memories
  • Nightmares, difficulty sleeping
  • Emotional lability
  • Intrusive images/memories that can sometimes feel as real as life
  • Irritability
  • Strained relationships
  • Guilt, shame, or self-blame
  • Avoidance (of people, places, things, etc)
  • Feelings of helplessness
  • Hypervigilance (extreme alertness)
  • Quick to startle
  • Paranoia
  • Isolation
  • Feelings of unease
  • Difficulty concentrating
“Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed, it means the damage no longer controls our lives.”
- Unknown

Treatment:

Oftentimes with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), clients attempt to utilize avoidance to deny/push the traumatic event away. Yet, this coping style is only effective temporarily; over time, it tends to make the symptoms of PTSD even more pronounced. You cannot eliminate PTSD by avoiding it. A specific type of exposure therapy, referred to as Prolonged Exposure Therapy, is used to treat PTSD; this type of approach asks the client to repeatedly visit the traumatic event(s) in their imagination while also recounting the event(s) aloud in session with the support of the therapist. The revisiting is followed by processing and digesting the content with the goal of gaining a new perspective about oneself, others, and the world. Essentially, this treatment approach helps to integrate the memories/event(s) in one’s mind in a healthier way. Rather than a prescribed treatment timeline, in my experience, I have found that this specific treatment approach is most effective when the pace of delivery is tailored to each individual client based on his/her readiness for change.

“Learn to differentiate between the sound of your intuition guiding you and your trauma misleading you.”
- Unknown

“Storms make trees take deeper roots.” - Dolly Parton