Are You Struggling with PTSD or a Past Trauma?

Do you avoid going to sleep for fear of nightmares?

Are you easily startled, easily “set off”, or overwhelmed by feeling constantly on guard?

Do you find it easier to just stay home, away from people, and isolate?

You have experienced a traumatic incident or multiple traumas in your life and you don’t seem to be able to get past it. You feel like you are just “going through the motions” in your life. You feel overwhelmed with fear, anger, depression or anxiety. Maybe you don’t trust yourself out in the community, so you avoid going out and miss special events. Perhaps you are so easily startled or triggered by everything that you find it easier to stay in the house away from people and reminders. This only results in you feeling more isolated.

People in your life expect you to move past your trauma because it is affecting your relationships with loved ones or with your partner. You don’t understand why you can’t “just move on” and be happy. Perhaps it’s also affecting your life socially or performance at work or school. For example, you may be so unfocused at work you’re struggling with getting things done or you’re feeling disconnected from friends. With PTSD treatment, you can find relief and happiness.

Many People Experience Trauma Within Their Lifetime

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)*, more than 61% of men and 51% of women will experience a traumatic event within their lifetime. Like many, if you have experienced a traumatic experience, you don’t have to struggle alone. There is treatment available and you can feel better.

Although often used interchangeably, a trauma and PTSD are different. The American Psychological Association (APA)* describes a trauma as an “emotional response to a terrible event”. This could be a single incident that you experienced (car accident, rape, physical assault) or something that occurred multiple times (abuse, neglect, domestic violence). Your trauma can even be something that you witnessed or happened to a close friend or loved one (family violence, natural disaster). Trauma related symptoms simply mean that you are struggling with moving past this trauma.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is similar, as it is also connected to a trauma that happened to you, around you or something you witnessed. However, PTSD is a condition that sometimes develops after a trauma has occurred. The brain doesn’t understand that the danger from that experience is over. So, it continues to come up whenever you encounter something familiar (a trigger) in the form of symptoms such as nightmares, flashbacks, bad memories or unexplained mood swings (anger, depression, anxiety).

PTSD is similar to a window that doesn’t shut all the way. During nice weather it is easy to forget it’s even there. Things are going well so we don’t notice it. Then, when the bad weather hits, the cold air or pelting rain sneaks in and envelops us. It can cause us to feel smothered or cause disarray. Sometimes when we least expect it. We become confused because ‘things were going so well’.

You don’t have to live a life in which you feel trapped or stuck in your symptoms. You don’t need to avoid leaving the house or struggle with bad memories and nightmares ruining your day or restful sleep. PTSD treatment can help you feel more comfortable in your own skin and provide you with improved relationships and better sleep.

PTSD Treatment Can Help You Move Past Your Trauma

Working through your trauma can be difficult and the process to ‘move past it’ is different for every person. That is why my practice focuses on creating a safe and supportive environment that is individualized for what you need.

In our first few sessions, we will create a plan specifically designed to address your needs and goals. We will focus on what types of symptoms you are experiencing and what you would like to achieve from treatment. If you’re not sure at this time, that’s ok too. We can work on it together and add or make changes as we go. Then, we will start filling your toolbox with strategies to help provide relief from your symptoms. For example, if you are struggling with nightmares, we will work on sleep strategies to improve the restfulness of your sleep and decrease the likelihood of experiencing them.

Although I pull from many different techniques to meet the needs of the client, the three therapeutic approaches that I use most often for trauma counseling and the treatment of PTSD are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)/Relaxation, Narrative Exposure Therapy and EMDR Therapy.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)/Relaxation:

Your amygdala is the part of your brain that controls the fight, flight, freeze response. The part that causes that internal gasp in your chest when a smoke alarm goes off. When you are experiencing negative effects of a trauma, it is because the amygdala thinks you are still in danger and goes into panic mode.

CBT looks at how your thinking patterns affect your behavior and emotions. Together, we will look at patterns in your symptoms to identify very specific triggers. Then, we will fill your toolbox with behavioral and relaxation skills that you can use to relax your amygdala, which turns off the fight, flight, freeze response. Also, we will develop coping skills that you can use to manage your trigger responses to make them less severe, such as mindful breathing and the butterfly hug.

Narrative Exposure Therapy*:

The way we view our life influences how we how we feel about it. We create a story about our life by combining a series of experiences together. When we experience trauma or even repeated traumatic events, we can create a story that is framed around that trauma. This can cause persistent distress.

Narrative Exposure Therapy helps you process your trauma within the context of your life by combining visual imagery with oral and written language. First, this consists of learning relaxation skills to increase your ability to recall details of your trauma in a relaxed body state. Then, with the use of pictures and third person narrative details, you are able to tell the story of your trauma in a relaxed body state.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR):

EMDR was developed more than 30 years ago, originally for people with trauma and PTSD. It is one of the few treatment approaches approved by the VA for PTSD. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation (mild light, sound or music that moves from side to side) to jumpstart the brain’s natural healing process. This results in a decreased response a specific trigger.

I have been working with clients recovering from trauma and PTSD symptoms for more than 10 years. They have seen great improvements in their lives such as being able to go out into the community for errands or shopping, reconnect with friends or loved ones and be more productive at work. Together, we can help you achieve your goals towards a happier life.

You may still have concerns about starting PTSD treatment…

What if my trauma isn’t bad enough?

People very often say to me “I know people who have been through worse. I don’t know why I just can’t get over it. Maybe I don’t need trauma counseling. Maybe I just need to move on.”

Everyone’s trauma is individual. Your experience and how your body responds to that experience is unique. It is common to lessen your experience by viewing things others have been through as worse. However, your feelings and your body’s responses to your trauma are normal and valid. There is nothing wrong with needing help with healing your mind and body. You deserve to have a trained PTSD therapist to hear you and help you through your trauma.

What if my trauma is too overwhelming?

It is natural to feel worried or scared with the thought of getting trauma treatment because of the difficult emotions or memories involved. The first thing we do is work on filling your toolbox with skills that you can use to manage and reduce your distress. This will result in things feeling more manageable because you are less overwhelmed by your triggers. Then, we work on desensitizing or taking the power out of those triggers so your alarm bells don’t go off as often.

What if I’m unsure if I am ready to work through my trauma?

Trauma counseling is a process. We can take this process as slow as you need. Part of any type of counseling is developing a therapeutic relationship with your therapist. When working through trauma, this is especially important. We will start with building a safe space where you can focus on developing trust.

The next step is to work on behavioral skills that will help you decrease your distress. Many people find that this makes trauma therapy much less overwhelming. Every step of the way, you will have a voice in guiding where your therapy goes.

You Can Find Relief from Your PTSD Symptoms

Would you like to find a way to manage, reduce or eliminate your PTSD symptoms and lead a happier life? Do you think we may be a good fit?

If you would like to learn more about how PTSD treatment may be able to help you, feel free to contact me. I offer a free no obligation, 30-minute consultation and respond to all voicemails and emails within 24 hours. If you would like to schedule an appointment, please call or contact me. I look forward to hearing from you!

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