What is trauma?
Trauma is basically an injury. A psychological trauma is an injury to the mind, body and brain as they are all connected. Trauma is registered in the fight/flight/freeze area of your brain, so we need to work at this level to help recovery from it.
You may or not know about the trauma you have experienced. Fragmented and vague memories are very common due to traumatic events.
There are two main categories of trauma:
PTSD is a more common diagnosis because it is the only diagnosis. In reality I believe that most people suffer more Complex Trauma or C-PTSD which is not a recognised diagnosis in the DSM-5 manual. Whichever you fall into, trauma is a normal response to an abnormal situation.
If you suspect that you have C-PTSD or repeated childhood trauma I believe it is essential your therapist is well versed in EGO State work or IFS Therapy.
As your system attempts to recover and process trauma it can cause some problems. Just like a computer or machine being 'overworked' it may not work as you want it to. It's doing its' best though, trauma therapy aids the process of recovery.
Trauma Symptoms may include but not be exclusive to:
No matter how long ago the trauma was it can still affect you today. This is because the memory is unprocessed, it may feel as if it is still happening or at the front of your mind.
Trauma may come from:
You do not need to have a diagnosis to get the help from me. I work in private and I am here to help you heal and recover. I am not here to diagnose, label, or give you medication. If you are unsure it's fine you can still attend to explore whatever it is you want help with.
You may or not know about the trauma you have experienced. Fragmented and vague memories are very common due to traumatic events.
There are two main categories of trauma:
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder/PTSD - this is usually when there has been one incident of trauma - such as an assault of any nature, medical procedure or road traffic incident
- Complex Trauma or Developmental Trauma - this is usually when trauma stems from childhood, there have been more than one or two trauma incidents or there has been grief involved with trauma.
PTSD is a more common diagnosis because it is the only diagnosis. In reality I believe that most people suffer more Complex Trauma or C-PTSD which is not a recognised diagnosis in the DSM-5 manual. Whichever you fall into, trauma is a normal response to an abnormal situation.
If you suspect that you have C-PTSD or repeated childhood trauma I believe it is essential your therapist is well versed in EGO State work or IFS Therapy.
As your system attempts to recover and process trauma it can cause some problems. Just like a computer or machine being 'overworked' it may not work as you want it to. It's doing its' best though, trauma therapy aids the process of recovery.
Trauma Symptoms may include but not be exclusive to:
- Addiction & cravings - attempts to regulated mood using food, sex, drugs and anything else you can think of to protect Self from trauma
- Avoidance of anything to do with the trauma or risk or the opposite - 'risky behaviours'
- Dissociation - the feeling of not being present.
- Flashbacks - these can come in the form of pictures/memories, emotions or physical feelings
- Exhaustion - Chronic Fatigue
- Nightmares - People often have nightmares about the people involved or the incident.
- Phobias - often developed in response to a trauma
- Unexplained physical sensations, such as pain, sweating, feeling sick or trembling
No matter how long ago the trauma was it can still affect you today. This is because the memory is unprocessed, it may feel as if it is still happening or at the front of your mind.
Trauma may come from:
- Abuse or bullying in any form: emotional abuse, psychological, or sexual.
- Being overworked - well and truly burnt out
- Death/loss of a loved one
- Doing a traumatic job - a first responder or emergency worker.
- Near death experience
- Pregnancy and birth
- Road traffic incident
- Witnessing someone involved in a trauma/injury or death (called secondary/vicarious trauma)
You do not need to have a diagnosis to get the help from me. I work in private and I am here to help you heal and recover. I am not here to diagnose, label, or give you medication. If you are unsure it's fine you can still attend to explore whatever it is you want help with.
