Are you ready to finally let go of your pain and suffering?
Trauma is a deeply distressing or disturbing experience that can cause ongoing suffering. Trauma can cause both physical and psychological symptoms, and everyone experiences trauma in a different way. Childhood trauma, domestic violence, the sudden death of a loved one, and sexual or physical abuse can lead to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Signs you may be suffering from trauma:
You feel anxious or experience other intense emotions due to childhood trauma or current trauma.
You struggle with physical manifestations of traumatic stress such as shaking, rapid breathing, pounding heart, or racing thoughts.
You experience nightmares or flashbacks.
You find yourself avoiding certain people, places, or situations that remind you of your trauma.
You have trouble forming deeper relationships.
You feel trapped by your trauma and want to be free.
You experience distress about COVID-19 or other recent events that trigger your trauma.
What to Expect From PTSD Treatment
In the beginning phase of therapy, we will collect a full history based on the issues you want to work with. The full history includes your family, relationships, education, social life, and employment history. This assessment helps us understand your past and current behaviors, thoughts, feelings. As a therapist, our job is to help you raise awareness of how your past has shaped you as a person. We will identify any unhelpful narratives and behaviors you developed in the past. Processing these past issues is an essential part of solving your current issues. Thus, we can stop old and unhealthy patterns of thinking or behaviors and integrate new and effective patterns into your life.
We will spend the first few sessions building a foundation for the therapeutic relationship. I believe that creating a safe and comfortable space is one of the most important jobs as a therapist. Starting therapy, opening up to a stranger, and addressing your issues are a challenging feat. Many of our clients don’t know what to talk about or where to start. This is no problem, I can take the lead or help guide your sessions based on your needs and goals.
The purpose of PTSD therapy is to identify your goals and needs while tracking your progress in each session. In addition, I will give you actionable emotional regulation activities you can practice between sessions. Self-healing is about practicing on your own and reflecting on what works and what does not work for you. With the combination of therapy and guided self-healing practice, you will become less defensive and reactive.
The Approach to Healing Trauma
Working through trauma is not easy, and I personally know what it’s like to feel depressed, fearful, and anxious. I understand how your traumatic experience can interfere with your ability to function normally at work and home and have meaningful relationships I’m here to help lead you to your own way of processing and coping with overwhelming situations so you can return to the life you deserve.
Mindfulness : We all have an ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, thinking, and feeling. Nevertheless, learning mindfulness skills can sometimes feel strange.
Our emotions can be powerful when we are not mindful. Anger grabs our attention and we feel out of control or anxiety clouds our mind and we react thoughtlessly. Mindfulness can help you expand your consciousness and attention to stay in the moment as opposed to dwelling on painful experiences. Thus you can become more responsive rather than reactive. I will provide your actionable tools such as body scan and breathing exercises to regulate unpleasant sensations and thoughts in an effective way. As a result, you will have a better relationship with yourself.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Trauma can scramble your brain and make it hard to think clearly. Cognitive behavioral therapy provides a structured way to notice inaccurate or negative thinking and develop better responses to difficult situations. CBT explains that our thoughts and behaviors are associated with our emotions. When you are aware of unhelpful or negative thoughts and behaviors, you can change the way you feel about yourself, others, and the world.
Internal Family System (IFS): Internal Family System is a method that proven to be effective for treating anxiety and trauma. IFS explains that we all have multiple personalities or inner parts of ourselves. Each inner part or personality has a role to sustain life. These parts interact with each other just as people interact. This means that some of these parts run into conflict when one part has more power or disregards other parts.
IFS stresses the importance of resolving the internal conflict between parts. For instance, a part of you may be scared to begin therapy, while another part of you knows that therapy will be helpful. We have different parts for different goals within each of us. With IFS, we can find a way to heal vulnerable parts and restore a healthy and balanced internal system. I believe that the process of recovery from anxiety must be self-directed with the support and guidance of a therapist. This allows you to create your own sense of agency, control, and safety.
EMDR: An Evidence-Based Approach to Healing Trauma
I specialize in trauma-informed care and am certified in EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). EMDR therapy is an evidence-based practice for treating PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) symptoms and relieving the psychological effects of trauma. EMDR therapy accesses the brain’s natural mechanisms for processing upsetting experiences.
When you’ve had a very upsetting experience, the brain does not process information as it normally would. These memories become frozen or stuck in your mind and body. EMDR therapy works to rewire the memory networks that trigger our emotional and physical reactions.
What to Expect with EMDR
During our sessions, we will identify each upsetting memory and process them through related distressing image, emotions, bodily sensations, and beliefs/thoughts.
One of the key elements in EMDR is bilateral stimulation which is similar to eye movement in REM (Rapid Eye Movements) sleep. The bilateral stimulation incorporates left to right eye movements or other forms of rhythmic left and right stimulation (like taps and tones). Bilateral stimulation activates the brain’s own information processing system and allows us to change our reaction to these memories.
While working together with EMDR, you will recover from trauma and alleviate unpleasant physical and emotional reactions. You will be able to heal from your past and develop a healthier sense of self.
You can release trauma and start fresh. Schedule your free consultation with me today to find out how we can work together to heal your past and begin a new future.
I made videos about various healing tools. Here is a video of EMDR Therapy Demonstration: