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Trauma Informed Therapy
About Trauma: Psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress are neurobiological responses to a deeply distressing or disturbing event or series of events. Traumatic experiences overwhelm our ability to return to a state of normalcy and self-regulation. Many life experiences can be confusing and overwhelming for people who have experienced trauma. They often feel flooded when ordinary events trigger thoughts, emotions, and sensations associated with the traumatic event as if it were still happening. Trauma survivors can feel disoriented and discouraged because they often function well in some areas of their lives, but feel incapacitated in others.
Trauma survivors may develop a variety of symptoms and coping strategies that disrupt their daily lives. Survivors often struggle with feelings of helplessness, diminished self-worth, difficulty feeling a full range of emotions, and an inability to feel safe and satisfied. Common symptoms include depression, anxiety, fears and phobias, substance use, social isolation, feeling numb or detached, nightmares, insomnia, sexual difficulties, constant self-criticism, chronic exhaustion, headaches, and many unexplained physical symptoms.
When using the word trauma, most people are familiar with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, (PTSD) when they think of war veterans, victims of crime, or victims of disasters. PTSD is related to a one time event or single incident of a life threatening experience. This can include witnessing the event as well as personally experiencing it. But in closely assessing one’s life experiences, we find that trauma describes the adverse effect of any experience that felt unsafe, physically, sexually or emotionally, or was perceived as a threat to life or survival. This includes emotional neglect or misattunement, attachment or relational trauma,
For more information on PTSD and Complex PTSD: How is CPTSD Different from PTSD?
Compassionate, attuned treatment offers hope & healing
Trauma-Informed Therapy offers evidence-based treatment for people whose lives have been impacted by trauma. The Trauma-Informed approach integrates a variety of therapeutic modalities to address the impact of trauma on the mind, body, and spirit. An integrative, trauma-informed approach carefully assesses where survivors are in their healing process and utilizes gentle, supportive methods to improve coping tools and facilitate healing.
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As a Trauma-Informed Therapist, I utilize: Psycho-education, Attachment-Focused EMDR/Flash Technique, Structural Dissociation, Internal Family Systems, and Somatic Internal Family Systems (SIFS), Sensorimotor & relaxation techniques, Psychodynamic Talk Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Mindfulness Practices.