Trauma Therapy
What exactly do we mean by “trauma”? Psychological Trauma or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can result from any of the following life experiences: Physical, emotional, psychological or sexual abuse, rape, assault, battery, being a victim of a crime or witnessing a crime, near-death experience, potentially life-threatening situation, surviving a natural disaster, war/combat veterans, “combat fatigue”/”shell shock”, “acute stress disorder”, being diagnosed with a serious medical or psychiatric condition, motor vehicle accident, or any other accident or fall resulting in serious injury.
Trauma therapy is a specialty. Unfortunately, it is also one of the mental health conditions which some therapists will say they specialize in or work with when they actually have no specialized training and/or limited professional experience in treating clients to successful resolution of their trauma symptoms or complaints.
I was fully trained in EMDR therapy by the EMDR Institute in 2007. Since then, I have taken additional trainings in advanced EMDR techniques, and I have been practicing EMDR with clients who come to me specifically for trauma therapy. At this time, more than half of my full-time caseload is coming to me for trauma work.
Complex Trauma/PTSD, in which I am experienced, is something I've been helping clients heal from for years. Beyond trauma symptoms, complex trauma can shape a person's entire life, from their personality and self-image, to their relationships, functioning and overall life satisfaction. Symptoms can include panic, chronic depression, isolation, self-harm, adult attachment disorder and dissociative disorders, including Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder. I have worked with all kinds of severe abuse and neglect, incest, spiritual/satanic abuse, ritual abuse and torture.
To recover from trauma or abuse, you don’t have to remember it all, you don’t have to process it all, and we will structure your therapy so that you don’t re-experience it. But you CAN reduce the hold it has on your life and learn to live more effectively, breathe more fully, manage symptoms and make a better life for yourself.
If you are a victim of a single incident trauma or multiple traumas, I can help you. At the least, we can make life worth living again, we can improve your quality of life, and maybe we can free you of your PTSD diagnosis. Yes, it is possible.
Trauma therapy is a specialty. Unfortunately, it is also one of the mental health conditions which some therapists will say they specialize in or work with when they actually have no specialized training and/or limited professional experience in treating clients to successful resolution of their trauma symptoms or complaints.
I was fully trained in EMDR therapy by the EMDR Institute in 2007. Since then, I have taken additional trainings in advanced EMDR techniques, and I have been practicing EMDR with clients who come to me specifically for trauma therapy. At this time, more than half of my full-time caseload is coming to me for trauma work.
Complex Trauma/PTSD, in which I am experienced, is something I've been helping clients heal from for years. Beyond trauma symptoms, complex trauma can shape a person's entire life, from their personality and self-image, to their relationships, functioning and overall life satisfaction. Symptoms can include panic, chronic depression, isolation, self-harm, adult attachment disorder and dissociative disorders, including Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder. I have worked with all kinds of severe abuse and neglect, incest, spiritual/satanic abuse, ritual abuse and torture.
To recover from trauma or abuse, you don’t have to remember it all, you don’t have to process it all, and we will structure your therapy so that you don’t re-experience it. But you CAN reduce the hold it has on your life and learn to live more effectively, breathe more fully, manage symptoms and make a better life for yourself.
If you are a victim of a single incident trauma or multiple traumas, I can help you. At the least, we can make life worth living again, we can improve your quality of life, and maybe we can free you of your PTSD diagnosis. Yes, it is possible.
E.M.D.R. (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
It’s a mouthful, I know, but it’s not as complicated as it sounds. EMDR is a powerful therapeutic process that has helped hundreds of thousands of people find relief from a wide range of emotional problems.
EMDR – It’s not just for trauma anymore. What other kinds of problems can it help with? EMDR has evolved into a useful treatment for a range of problems in addition to PTSD, trauma, and the emotional baggage of an abusive or neglectful childhood. These include anxiety, panic, specific phobias, agoraphobia, major depression, low self-esteem, grief and bereavement, performance anxiety, insomnia and nightmares, anger, and chronic pain. It has become a valuable adjunct to other therapies as well.
What does EMDR Therapy Involve? Initial sessions are required to gather history and gain an understanding of the nature of the problem, assess the client’s suitability for EMDR treatment, determine the specific events to be targeted, and orient the client to the process. The brain’s built-in, natural healing mechanisms are utilized by the use of alternating bilateral stimulation through sensory input. Traditionally, this is facilitated through guided eye movements (following a visual cue), but equally effective are methods using auditory or tactile stimuli (for example: tones played alternately in each ear, and sensors which are held in the hands and softly vibrate). During bilateral stimulation, clients focus on a specific positive or negative event: past, current, anticipated or even imagined. Residues of negativity are reduced or eliminated, and feelings of competence, self-worth and wellbeing are enhanced.
How does EMDR work? We don’t really know for certain how it works. We do know that several components are key: 1) the client must focus on something significant, typically an event; 2) the client must center on him/herself in the present while recalling aspects of the event; and 3) bilateral stimulation is essential. What clients experience varies, but the outcome is effective change to the long term effects of the traumatic event on themselves emotionally, cognitively and behaviorally.
More facts to consider: The only therapy with more empirical, independent research supporting it than EMDR is Behavior Modification/Exposure Therapy. EMDR is the first therapy to use SPECT brain scans to show change after treatment. EMDR cannot take away anything a client needs to feel, think, etc. The brain does the work and heals itself naturally with the participation of the client. The therapist is merely a guide or facilitator of the process. EMDR is structured in such a way that the chance of “re-traumatization” is significantly reduced or eliminated; assessment procedures screen out clients who would not be appropriate. EMDR is unique in the speed at which deep-seated problems can be resolved. In one study, EMDR was twice as effective in half the amount of time as standard talk therapy.
EMDR – It’s not just for trauma anymore. What other kinds of problems can it help with? EMDR has evolved into a useful treatment for a range of problems in addition to PTSD, trauma, and the emotional baggage of an abusive or neglectful childhood. These include anxiety, panic, specific phobias, agoraphobia, major depression, low self-esteem, grief and bereavement, performance anxiety, insomnia and nightmares, anger, and chronic pain. It has become a valuable adjunct to other therapies as well.
What does EMDR Therapy Involve? Initial sessions are required to gather history and gain an understanding of the nature of the problem, assess the client’s suitability for EMDR treatment, determine the specific events to be targeted, and orient the client to the process. The brain’s built-in, natural healing mechanisms are utilized by the use of alternating bilateral stimulation through sensory input. Traditionally, this is facilitated through guided eye movements (following a visual cue), but equally effective are methods using auditory or tactile stimuli (for example: tones played alternately in each ear, and sensors which are held in the hands and softly vibrate). During bilateral stimulation, clients focus on a specific positive or negative event: past, current, anticipated or even imagined. Residues of negativity are reduced or eliminated, and feelings of competence, self-worth and wellbeing are enhanced.
How does EMDR work? We don’t really know for certain how it works. We do know that several components are key: 1) the client must focus on something significant, typically an event; 2) the client must center on him/herself in the present while recalling aspects of the event; and 3) bilateral stimulation is essential. What clients experience varies, but the outcome is effective change to the long term effects of the traumatic event on themselves emotionally, cognitively and behaviorally.
More facts to consider: The only therapy with more empirical, independent research supporting it than EMDR is Behavior Modification/Exposure Therapy. EMDR is the first therapy to use SPECT brain scans to show change after treatment. EMDR cannot take away anything a client needs to feel, think, etc. The brain does the work and heals itself naturally with the participation of the client. The therapist is merely a guide or facilitator of the process. EMDR is structured in such a way that the chance of “re-traumatization” is significantly reduced or eliminated; assessment procedures screen out clients who would not be appropriate. EMDR is unique in the speed at which deep-seated problems can be resolved. In one study, EMDR was twice as effective in half the amount of time as standard talk therapy.
Resources
- EMDR: The Breakthrough Therapy for Overcoming Anxiety, Stress, and Trauma by Francine Shapiro and M.S. Forrest
- www.emdr.com
- www.emdria.org
- Self Care Tips for Victims of Rape