Trauma Treatment
"Trauma compromises our ability to engage with others by replacing patterns of connection with patterns of protection."
- Deb Dana
Trauma-Informed Treatment
So what exactly is trauma? The easy answer is trauma is a subjective experience in the eye of the beholder. It is not necessarily the facts of a situation but our interpretation and meaning that matter. Experiencing something as traumatic is often part of an individual’s inability to really make sense of or create a coherent narrative of an event. Broadly speaking, trauma is defined as a single event or series of events that is experienced as deeply distressing or disturbing and causes emotional and psychological harm. There are a number of psychological disorders associated with trauma, most notably Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). However, not all expressions of trauma are straight forward.
This is especially true for individuals who experienced trauma early in life or over a long period of time. Understanding the lasting impact of how our histories related to attachment and subsequent self-survival strategies have had on the development of ourselves, our emotions, and our relationships can be extremely enlightening during the recovery process. Early attachment injuries can manifest through a multitude of problematic behaviors in adulthood as well as making some individuals more susceptible to developing PTSD from subsequent trauma. A combination of interventions including attachment-based, schema therapy, and/or Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) as well as introducing elements from neuroscience may be applied in trauma work. Together, we will deconstruct dysfunctional perspectives to generate integration of narratives in a way that resolves unresolved trauma.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder is a normal response to an abnormal event. When an event is severe enough, nearly everyone experiences symptoms of PTSD immediately after. Symptoms may last for several days or even weeks, but they tend to gradually dissipate over time as resolution of the threatening situation occurs. In those who don't recover, strong negative emotions lead to disturbances in the integration of cognitive, sensory, and emotional processing of the event. There are four major categories of symptoms that need to be present for a diagnosis of PTSD including intrusive images and sensations, negative changes in mood and thinking, alterations in arousal and reactivity, and patterns of avoidance. A diagnosis is typically given by a mental health provider after an full assessment has been conducted.
Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD)
Complex PTSD diverges from a traditional PTSD diagnosis due to the nature of trauma exposure and is often accompanied by other problematic behaviors and mental health disorders. The cause of complex trauma is commonly attributed to the extremity or accumulation of chronic, repeated trauma over a long period of time. People with C-PTSD often have early attachment injuries from caregivers and in relationships that are aggravated by later trauma. Additional symptoms that can manifest include difficulty with regulating emotions, dissociation, feeling different or separate from others, difficulty with interpersonal relationships, somatic symptoms, distorted perceptions of abuser(s), destructive or risky behaviors, and suicidal thoughts.
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is a short-term, evidenced-based treatment for anyone who has a diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) related to a variety of traumatic events including natural disasters, child abuse, sexual violence, domestic violence, and military combat. At its core, CPT is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy that aims to identify and explore how the trauma(s) has changed thoughts and beliefs, keeping individuals “STUCK” from being able to recover. CPT has over 25 years of clinical research proving its effectiveness and has been endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs and Defense, as well as the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies, as a best practice for the treatment of PTSD.
Watch this Short Video on how CPT Works
"Sometimes when you're in a dark place you think you've been buried, but you've actually been planted."
- Christine Caine