What is trauma?

Emotional trauma occurs when you experience a stressful life event that threatens your sense of safety and security leading to intense fear or disconnection. The negative feelings persist even after the trauma has ended. There are some common traumatic events that may lead to an emotional trauma response like witnessing and participating in acts of war, childhood abuse, or being victim of a violent crime but there are also many less common experiences that cause a trauma response in a person. Trauma may also be the result of having the experience of living in a home with one or both parents abusing alcohol and/or drugs, having a gambling addiction, sex addiction or mentally unstable.  The most important factor is how the trauma effected you and your emotional response to it.

What should I do? Will I ever get better?

If you think you may be suffering from an emotional trauma it is important to seek help. The effects of trauma are pervasive and can be extremely severe but they are very treatable. With help you can recover from the effects of trauma.

How does treatment help?

Treatment for trauma helps in two key ways. One is to help you process the trauma and your thoughts and feelings associated with it and the second is teaching you skills to manage anxiety, depression, flashbacks, and other distressing responses associated with trauma. In addition to psychotherapy, EMDR and hypnotherapy are treatments we offer, which are specific to healing trauma.  By providing support, skills, and a safe non judgmental place to process your experience healing can occur no matter how long ago the trauma was.