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01

What is Trauma Informed Care?

Posted by Collaborative Counseling
How to Pick a Therapist

Trauma informed care has become a highly coveted model for treating people who have experienced traumatic experiences or events. Read more to learn about trauma and this form of treatment.

What is Trauma?

Trauma is defined as an emotional or psychological response to an event that is deeply distressing or disturbing. It can refer to things that are upsetting, such as being involved in an accident, loosing a close loved one, or going through a divorce.  It can also refer to the extreme end of the spectrum as well. This would be things that are severely damaging such as assault or kidnapping.

Trauma-Informed Care

Trauma informed care is not about specific techniques. It is an overall approach to providing care. Trauma informed care should include the following six principles.

  1. A safe therapeutic environment is essential to aid in recovery.
  2. Trauma related symptoms and behaviors originate from adapting to traumatic experiences.
  3. Recovery from trauma is a goal in treatment.
  4. Resiliency and trauma resistant skills training are part of treatment.
  5. It focuses on client strengths.
  6. Trauma recovery is a collaborative effort.

What to Look for in a Trauma Informed Therapist

First and foremost, a trauma therapist should realize the impact that trauma has on a person. They should also have an understanding of potential paths for recovery. They should also be able to detect the signs of trauma in clients. Along with being able to detect the signs they should be able to respond to these signs. They should use their full knowledge of trauma practices and procedures to assist their client. Lastly, a trauma informed therapist should actively resist re-traumatizing clients.

The Importance of Trauma Informed Care

Everyone has different reactions to traumatic events. Some people may be able to cope with and move past their trauma rather quickly, whereas others may develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The way people react to and retell the traumatic event that they experienced can determine whether the people around them will believe what happened. Those who react with strong emotion are often seen as more credible than those who remain stoic and are able to look past the emotion.

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08

Trauma Informed Therapy

Posted by Collaborative Counseling
Individual Therapy for EMDR Treatment

If you are beginning your search for therapy, it can be hard to know where to start. It can be overwhelming to understand the types of therapy that are offered by therapists, and which one might be a good fit for you. Here we will cover the basics of trauma informed therapy and how this type of therapy may be helpful for you.

What is trauma?

Trauma is any distressing experience. Anyone can deal with trauma and we can experience trauma in varying degrees. 

Karen Onderko, the Director of Research and Education at Integrated Listening Systems describes different levels of trauma through large “t” and little “t” trauma. 

We often ignore or disregard little trauma, because these are things that do not completely disrupt our daily life. As Onderko puts it, small “t” trauma “seem(s) surmountable”. Life changes, relationship conflict or financial troubles can be trauma. The internalization of these events may be interpreted differently for everyone, so for some, they may not be as distressing.

On the other hand, large trauma sends us into deep distress or helplessness. These tend to be larger experiences, including things like traumatic events or ongoing stressors, such as emotional or physical abuse.  These are things that most people think of when they hear the word, “trauma”.

It’s important to acknowledge and understand that we can all experience trauma in many different forms and at different levels. Everyone internalizes life events differently.

What does trauma informed therapy mean?

Trauma informed therapy aims to understand how trauma affects one’s life. This type of therapy is a type of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) which sees to identify our thoughts about how we view our current life situation or issue. CBT helps us learn how to change the way we view or think of ourselves.

Trauma informed therapy helps us process events that have happened in our past, how that may be triggering to us, and the effect it may take in our life.

How can it help?

The effectiveness of therapy increases when we discuss and recognize our trauma. It searches to identify and understand the root of our pain or anxiety, and then helps us understand ourselves from that perspective. 

This type of therapy is beneficial to anyone who experiences trauma—large or small. Through these traumas, we can see how that may influence our behavior. Understanding our behavior from this perspective may also help us grow into healthier behaviors sooner.

Overall, trauma informed therapy may be a good option for therapy for some, but there are plenty of types of therapy that are beneficial to those seeking help.

To find a list of therapy types, click here.

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07

What Kinds of Therapy Can Help Treat PTSD?

Posted by Collaborative Counseling
Individual Therapy for EMDR Treatment

PTSD, like other diagnoses, has many treatments that can be effective for a broad array of individuals. Here, we will discuss some of the most popular and effective treatments for PTSD.

Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

TF-CBT specifically targets children and adolescents. It can also be helpful for adults who have suffered trauma. TF-CBT is especially helpful for youth who have experienced abuse, violence or grief resulting in PTSD. This is a short-term therapy that generally lasts anywhere between 8-25 sessions. TF-CBT works to change distorted or negative reactions and behaviors. Additionally, family dynamics are emphasized in this approach as therapists aim to teach parenting, stress management and communication skills that can help the client succeed.

EMDR

EMDR stands for Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It helps the brain to reprocess the memories of the traumatic event. In turn, this helps to relieve many of the symptoms associated with PTSD and improve a person’s overall functioning. EMDR is different than traditional talk therapy. It identifies specific memories to target, so the client fully process past experiences and the feelings associated with the memory. Eventually, the goal is to replace negative thoughts and feelings with more positive ones that promote healthy behaviors.

Narrative Therapy

 Narrative therapy focuses on the story that someone who has experienced trauma, tells themselves. The story told to oneself can influence how that person perceives the world and their experiences and ultimately, their well-being. NT requires the client to tell the story of their life (chronologically) focusing on the traumatic event(s) or experience(s). The therapist asks the client to narrate the traumatic experience(s) and describe their emotions, thoughts and physiological responses to the therapist, all while remining connected to the present. This therapy asks a person to reflect on their entire life which means it can address multiple traumatic incidents. In the end it can help the client realize their human rights and gain back their self-respect.

Prolonged Exposure

Prolonged exposure therapy is a part of cognitive behavioral therapy (or CBT). Many individuals who have experienced trauma actively avoid anything that reminds them of said trauma.

This intervention works to teach whose individuals to confront their trauma-related memories, feelings and situations. In turn, this decreases the symptoms of PTSD by teaching the individual that their memories and feelings surrounding their trauma are not dangerous and do not need to be avoided. This is also a short-term therapy lasting anywhere from 8-15 sessions and gradually challenges the individual to confront uncomfortable stimuli and cope with the emotions associated with the stimuli.

It is important to keep in mind that there are a wide variety of therapies that may be able to help you or someone you know deal with their trauma. The best place to start is to find someone you feel comfortable with that can help you work through what you are dealing with. A great deal of research indicates the benefit of therapy is strongly correlated to the relationship a person has with their therapist, so finding someone that you connect to is very important. Visit our website to learn more about our team and how they can help you move forward at: https://www.collaborativemn.com/meet-our-team.

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01

Understanding Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Posted by Collaborative Counseling
What is EMDR therapy

According to the American Psychiatric Association Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, can occur when a person has experienced or witnessed a traumatic event. These can be events such as war, rape, a serious accident, or a natural disaster.  PTSD can happen when there is a threat to a person’s livelihood or sense of safety. Those with PTSD tend to have reoccurring thoughts, flashbacks, or even nightmares that are related to the traumatic event they experienced. They may feel sadness, anger, fear, or even detachment from others. They also tend to avoid putting themselves in situations that could remind them of the traumatic event. For example, a soldier who is experiencing PTSD after being in a war zone may avoid fireworks or loud noises that resemble gun fire as it brings back many memories and feelings associated with being in the war.

Myths about PTSD

 There are several myths surrounding PTSD and those who have it. Often people think of veterans who have returned home from war. However, the disorder affects people who have experienced all kinds of trauma ranging from sexual abuse to the sudden death of a loved one. Another common myth is that if you experience trauma, then you will develop PTSD. About 1 in 3 people who have experienced trauma will develop PTSD.

Many people who experience trauma do not develop PTSD but will display symptoms of stress following the incident such as insomnia, anxiety or depression. However, these people tend to recover from their symptoms. Those who do not and whose symptoms worsen or intensify over time, develop PTSD.

What are things that make a person vulnerable to PTSD?

 There are some risk factors when it comes to developing PTSD. These include:

  • having little to no support system following the event
  • having a pre-existing anxiety or depression
  • Gender: Women are more likely than men to develop PTSD
  • Genetics: There is evidence to suggest that genes may play a role in making some more susceptible than others to the disorder
  • Added stress following the event such as losing a job or a loved one

According to the APA, this disorder affects roughly 3.5% of the American population with an estimated 1 in 11 people with experience PTSD throughout some point in their life. This means that an acquaintance, a friend, or even a close relative of yours could experience or may currently be experiencing this disorder. With that being said, you may wonder how you personally can help your loved one(s) who suffers from this disorder.

How do I help someone who is struggling with a traumatic event?

Here are a few suggestions from the National Center for PTSD if you know someone who may be struggling with a traumatic event:

If you or someone you know is struggling with a traumatic event, you do not need to suffer alone and we suggest you reach out to meet with a therapist to help you in processing and navigating any reactions you may be having. For more information about PTSD visit our website at: https://www.collaborativemn.com/issues-we-specialize-treating/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd

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