PTSD & Trauma Recovery

Something Shattered the Safety You Once Felt

It was shocking, terrifying. It happened so fast you couldn’t think. But at that moment, you did not believe you would make it through.

You’re different since. You jump at your own shadow! There are so many feelings – guilt, fear, anger. You try not to feel.

Thoughts go back there unwillingly. They loop insistently, going through what happened again and again.

You just want your life back. Isn’t time supposed to heal?

Much More Common Than We Like to Believe

A traumatic event is something sudden and overwhelming that you experience or witness. You perceive danger, fearing for your life or the lives of others. Trauma can also be a series of ongoing events like those faced by the military in wartime or medical personnel in a busy emergency room.

Even in less extreme circumstances, some individuals may respond to a difficult event with trauma. Given their personal history or vulnerability, it makes sense. Trauma is subjective, related to our perceptions. What is not traumatic for one individual may be for another.

Trauma is more common than we tell ourselves, more common than our culture likes to admit.

Time Doesn’t Heal All Wounds

Our bodies and brains always respond to a challenging experience. Often, this heals on its own. As we process what happened to us, symptoms fade.

When trauma persists long after the event, we run into trouble. The slightest reminder and we’re triggered; we are back in that moment, overwhelmed all over again.

Even without reminders, the nervous system is heightened, vigilant. It works to protect us, though the threat is gone. We hold the world differently; it’s not the safe place it was before.

Unrelenting trauma symptoms exhaust our ability to cope and heal. This is PTSD (post-traumatic stress syndrome); it does not heal on its own. Time does not help.

With Therapy, Trauma Resolves

With PTSD and trauma, it is so vital that therapy fits you. We explore where you are and start accordingly. We go where you need, depending on your symptoms, your experience.

We will get a little nerdy with some brain science. My clients find understanding the brain and its response to trauma, what is going on inside, immensely relieving. You are not crazy. Your nervous system is stuck in hyper-drive.

For the most overwhelming moments, I will show you skills, ways to modulate, titrate what’s happening inside. I will teach you resources you can use to calm, restore yourself. Mindfulness, gently noticing, is a useful tool in trauma recovery. We may choose to develop and practice little bits of mindfulness that work for you.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an empirically backed therapy that helps the brain process trauma. I have seen amazing results with EMDR.

We may process, but only if it helps you. Studies show that typical talk therapy can be slower to resolve trauma. Retelling the story can be retraumatizing for some; it hurts rather than helps. We will consider this before moving forward.

Find Calm and Peace Again

It is daunting to think about taking on your trauma. At times, it will be hard work. My clients tell me it is well worth it.

After trauma therapy, clients report feeling calm. Nervous systems are no longer on high alert; they can reconnect to their lives and purpose. They are freed to live.

Call (720) 593-6867 for a free 20-minute consultation. Let’s talk about whether trauma therapy is right for you.