For many of us in life, we all have experienced at least one incident of trauma during our lifetime. In some cases, there can be a series of distressing events that can affect people throughout a lifetime. These traumatic experiences can affect not just your emotional capability and physical health but also leave an impact on your relationships as well. Even though time may make these memories less triggering, waiting for the wounds to heal themselves or fade isn’t always a solution.
Therapy for trauma works like a guided path for such people; it helps them to understand, process, accept, and overcome the situations they are in. But why do people feel the need to take this journey? It’s not just about healing oneself but reclaiming the confidence and letting yourself be free from the triggers. Let’s get a clear understanding of what trauma therapy is, how it works, and why it is the right time for many people to turn to therapy.
Explaining the trauma therapy
The American Psychiatric Association defines trauma as
“a direct exposure to a serious injury or a threatened death, through experience, learning about it when it happened to a loved one, or repeated exposure to distressing events.”
However, if the trauma is left unseen, it often disrupts one’s emotional balance, relationships with people, and overall health. Over time, all of these can initiate physical symptoms like anxiety, depression, flashbacks, or even chronic pain.
The trauma therapy in general, is an effective approach that helps people living through the trauma process and recover from these events. This effective approach reduces the level of emotional reactivity, making you calm and building a sense of safety.
Key goals you can achieve with therapy
There are three main goals of therapy of trauma:
- Stabilization:
Stabilization means the coping skills to manage overwhelming emotions. Therapy teaches these coping skills so that you can stay calm in triggering situations.
- Processing
Leaving a memory of the traumatic responses so you can recognize and manage the trigger that can cause distress.
- Reintegration:
This helps individuals rebuild their lives and understand how trauma impacts their emotions and reactions. This builds an understanding of the trauma so you can overcome the traumatic situations.
Types of trauma therapy approaches.
There is a high prevalence of trauma in populations. Therapists use various trauma-specific approaches to address the epidemic of traumas.
This common type of therapy deals with unhealthy behavioral patterns and negative thoughts. Trauma-focused CBT targets the mental health needs of the young generation caused by early-age traumas. It helps individuals understand and control how thoughts influence emotions, feelings, and behavior.
Victims of sexual assault, abuse, or any kind of physical violence, abuse,e or grief are advised to use this therapy.
- Eye movement desensitization and processing
This approach involves stimulation to help release the trauma. It uses repetitive sequences of eye movement through left to right-hand movements that help release the emotions which were stuck by trauma.
EMDR is an evidence-based treatment for unprocessed memories associated with bad life experiences and trauma.
- Prolonged exposure therapy
This approach works exactly as it sounds. It carefully exposes the affected patient to a source of fear until you are not afraid of it anymore. This helps reduce the anxiety connected with that fear. This activity takes place under the supervision of a therapist.
Prolonged exposure therapy is proven practically for the avoidance of symptoms. It helps strengthen your control over the feeling of fear.
- Narrative therapy
Narrative therapy is a type of psychotherapy that aims to help people discover their values and the abilities that go with them. It involves working with a trauma therapist to narrate your story in a way that makes sense of your events and changes the way you see the world.
- Family therapy
The main focus of internal family systems therapy is to make individuals understand their core parts, like fear, anger, the urge to cry, and pain. It makes a balance between these parts and then with the self as a ‘family.’
To help people who have been most affected by psychological trauma, the IFS trauma therapist tries to get to know all of these parts and then establishes an equilibrium between them.
Additional approaches
There are additional approaches for therapy for trauma that use hypnotherapy, emotion-focused therapy, skills training in effect and interpersonal regulations (STAIR), interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), seeking safety, trauma incident reduction, accelerated resolution therapy (ART), metacognitive therapy, and imaginary rehearsal therapy.
Recognizing the need for trauma therapy
There is a unique population that can survive trauma. But with some people, trauma lingers with them like shadows, leaving a deep impact on their ability to act around things. Trauma therapies come with effective approaches to improve lives and mental well-being.
The following signs show that you need to opt for therapy.
Irregular sleep habits
The most common sign of unprocessed trauma that is shown in people is the lack of sleep, also known as insomnia, nightmares, or erratic sleeping patterns. Their mind is very alert, and not able to sleep or rest at all.
Avoiding social interactions
Isolation is another sign of the need for therapy. Avoiding friends, family, or social gatherings is generally because he cannot connect with the world or fears the vulnerability of showing himself to people.
Feeling hopeless most of the time
Ongoing feelings of hopelessness or despair can be crushing, making it difficult to imagine a brighter future or find pleasure in life.
Consumed by intrusive thoughts
Unwanted, distressing thoughts or memories of the traumatic event can overwhelm, making it hard to focus or feel present in the moment.
Not caring for things.
An individual may show a lack of interest in hobbies, responsibility, or other personal care, symptoms of emotional detachment, and loss of motivation that one faces during trauma.
Feeling overwhelmed
Sometimes, everyday chores or decision-making become unbearable as the emotional burden of trauma usually maximizes stress and feelings of helplessness.
What are the 5 R’s of trauma?
The 5 R’s of trauma form a guide in the recovery process. Every stage leads the person through a step of healing to cope with the trauma effects and build resilience back into life again.
R1: Recognition
Recognition is how past experiences have influenced emotions, behaviours, and thought patterns. It is not always immediate; sometimes, it happens that people live with unresolved trauma for years without fully understanding its effects. With a little more self-awareness or probably guidance from a therapist, you can start identifying the triggering point and take the first step forward in healing.
R2: Resilience
Resilience focuses on developing the inner strength needed to cope with and overcome trauma. It is built through supportive relationships, self-care practices, and learning to navigate emotions. Therapy often plays a crucial role in helping individuals uncover their innate strengths and develop tools to face challenges.
R3: Regulation
Regulation is a process of learning how to calm the nervous system and stabilize emotions. Such practices as mindfulness, breathing, grounding, or somatic therapies help people re-establish control over their responses to triggers, decrease anxiety, and increase feelings of safety.
R4: Reprocessing
Reprocessing is about re-viewing and re-framing traumatic memories in a safe and controlled space. EMDR or CBT can help process painful experiences without reverting to becoming re-traumatized. During this step, people are allowed to reinterpret past events, let go of the emotional weight attached to them, and begin healing.
R5: Reconnection
Rebuilding connection with oneself, others, and the world. Trauma makes people disconnect or mistrust, being some of the main feelings that may arise. Through reconnection, people regain their relationships, find their purpose once more, and get back to life. It is about trust and the pleasure of meaningful connections and experiences.
Takeaway
Trauma can leave a great mark on an individual’s emotional and mental well-being, often disrupting sleep patterns, relationships, and quality of life. When life’s challenges weigh you down, remember that seeking therapy for trauma is a courageous step towards healing and rediscovering your true self. It’s an opportunity to reclaim your life and embrace happiness.
Start your journey today. Reach out to us for a trauma therapist to take the first step toward reclaiming your peace, power, and purpose. The life you deserve is waiting for you.
