Treating Complex Trauma
At some point in your life, you will encounter trauma.
Whether your trauma was a one-time event or the result of ongoing stress, verbal or physical abuse, neglect, or chronic medical conditions, the result is a feeling of helplessness that can lead to you feeling trapped or stuck in life. What happens next can be just as distressing.
Racing thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, and constant worry and anxiety are common responses to trauma. The aftermath of trauma can leave you feeling like you can’t think straight or like you are walking around in a fog; decision making begins to feel impossible and unsafe.
You might feel like somehow you are to blame or are responsible for the horrific event that happened to you. You might feel sad and hopeless and start to withdraw from friends and family. Or, maybe you become so anxious and afraid that being alone feels intolerable.
If this is happening to you, you aren’t broken!
Your brain and body are working just as they were designed to, as uncomfortable as that is. This is your fight-or-flight system working to keep you protected and safe; it’s just doing its job a little too well.
When you find yourself constantly reliving painful or traumatic events, you begin to rewire your brain and the way you see the world around you. You might become moody, your friends and family may tell you that you don’t seem like yourself or that you’ve changed.
The truth is, you probably have. Maybe you have friends and family who tell you to “just get over it” or “just let it go.” When you hear statements like this, it can feel like no one could possibly understand what you have been through or what you are still going through. It can feel like no one believes the suffering and pain you feel day after day.
Call me now at (360) 565-5506
or click below to schedule your free initial consultation.
If you feel more comfortable using a contact form, click here to send me a message.
You don’t have to suffer in silence or alone. Counseling can help.
Counseling can feel like a scary step, especially after trauma. Maybe you are worried that your counselor will make you talk about the event in great detail or during every visit. Maybe you worry that your counselor will judge you or think you are hopeless.
Finding the right counselor for you can be an important step to recovery. It can be helpful to set up a short phone call to meet a potential counselor before committing to the counseling relationship.
Your counselor should be someone you feel comfortable with, someone who will give you space and time you need to develop trust in the relationship and move at your pace. You should feel like your counselor understands you and is able to start where ever you are on your path to healing.
Therapy is a safe space for you to talk about your problems and feelings and it is a place where healing can take place.
Therapy can help you learn ways to help manage your feelings and experiences so that you can get back to living in your day to day life. Therapy is so much more than just having someone to talk to for support and understanding.
While talking with your counselor can certainly help you feel better, your counselor also teaches you helpful coping skills to deal with the trauma you have experienced in your life so that you can learn to have safety and trust in your life again.
Just like when your body suffers a significant injury and needs medical interventions, trauma is a psychological injury that often requires the help of qualified professionals to help you heal and recover to the best of your abilities.
I have been helping people who have experienced significant trauma recover since my first day as a counselor. I have a wide range of therapeutic tools and do not believe in a one-size-fits-all approach to therapy.
Each person I serve as a professional counselor brings with them a unique personality and personal experiences. There is no one else out there like you. Your therapy should be customized and use the strengths and coping skills you already possess while building up a coping toolbox that you can use not only now but for the rest of your life.
As a counselor, I am committed to investing my time and training in understanding and treating trauma.
I use evidence-based treatments, which is just a fancy way of saying I am using tools and techniques that have repeatedly been proven to work. I believe healthy boundaries should extend to the counseling relationship, and so I take my time getting to know you and give you time to get to know me. I feel this slow pace is especially important for those who have suffered trauma and feel that the world can be an untrusting and unsafe place.
There are things you can do right now to start feeling better.
Start with simple, basic, everyday activities and make them a priority. While these things may seem unrelated, they can really help when your world feels so overwhelming and dangerous. Things like making sure you are getting enough to eat, giving yourself permission to rest when you need, and reach out ask for help and support from family, friends, or other supportive individuals you know.
Call me now at (360) 565-5506
or click below to schedule your free initial consultation.
If you feel more comfortable using a contact form, click here to send me a message.
