TRAUMA THERAPY & PTSD TREATMENT
Have I been impacted by trauma?
We hear a lot about trauma and traumatic experiences, but what exactly is trauma?
Trauma is an event or series of events that have profoundly impacted someone on a psychological and emotional level. The impacts of trauma can last for your entire life if you have not had the chance to process it. These impacts can show up in your life in many ways and affect everyone around you, including family, friends, and your community.
Trauma encompasses a wide range of events and situations. A few examples of traumatic events include: experiencing an abusive relationship, sexual assault, or another act of violence, being fired or working in a toxic workplace, going through a natural disaster, or losing a loved one. Childhood trauma, like growing up in an unstable living environment due to food insecurity, parents divorcing, abuse in the home, or an absent parent, affects many of us and can be difficult to process. All of the ways that trauma shows up in our lives can prevent us from living a full life if we do not seek support to process it.
SYMPTOMS OF TRAUMA
Here are common signs of trauma our therapists see in clients:
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Flashbacks
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Increased irritability
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Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
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Heightened sensitivity to loud noises or startling easily
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Difficulty connecting with or trusting others
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Becoming triggered or activated by something that reminds you of the trauma (sight, smell, or sound)
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Feelings of shame or guilt surrounding the experience
The circumstances you have lived through combined with your personality and other previous experiences make trauma symptoms complex. Each individual experiences symptoms or signs of trauma in their own unique way due to their unique lived experiences and history.
When does trauma become PTSD?
Some individuals develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after facing a traumatic experience, and symptoms of PTSD usually start within three months of the event. To meet the standards for PTSD, symptoms must last more than one month and affect characteristics of daily life, such as relationships or work. People suffering from PTSD sometimes have coinciding illnesses, such as depression, anxiety, or substance use. To be diagnosed with PTSD, an individual must show the following characteristics for at least one month: At least one re-experiencing symptom, one avoidance symptom, two arousal and reactivity symptoms, and two cognition and mood symptoms.
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You can also have trauma without PTSD. The main difference between trauma and PTSD is the length of time. Trauma refers to an individual’s experience during and immediately after a life-threatening or highly distressing event. PTSD is a longer-term condition where one continues to have flashbacks and re-experiences the traumatic event.
How can a trauma therapist in Atlanta, GA help you?
The trauma therapists at our Atlanta, GA area therapy practice work with folks wanting to process past trauma and/or treat their PTSD. A trauma therapist can help you look at traumatic experiences objectively, helping you find comfort in what you could or could not control at the time. They will help you put pieces of the puzzle together and build a narrative that helps you move forward instead of feeling stuck. Further, they will help you talk through how trauma or PTSD symptoms have shown up for you, then help you find healthy coping tools to implement moving forward.
What can you expect from trauma therapy in Atlanta, GA?
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Our trauma therapists are trained in many strategies to help you overcome trauma and PTSD. One particularly effective trauma treatment is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, which has a structured format to help you move through treatment and reduce your trauma or PTSD symptoms. EMDR is not a perfect fit for everyone, so you and your therapist can discuss if it is a good fit for you. Whether you and your therapist choose to use EMDR or not, you can expect your trauma therapist to provide a calm, open space for healing. They will meet you where you are, whether that’s feeling ready to tackle your symptoms or in the grieving process for what trauma has taken from you. Our therapists know that working through trauma and PTSD is not easy, but we believe that it is so worth it. Here are a few ways you may benefit from trauma therapy and PTSD treatment:
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Improvement in relationships and ability to connect and trust others
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Finding peace with your experiences and moving forward with life
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More mental clarity and better focus
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Better sleep and ability to relax
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Reduction in physical symptoms
Begin Trauma Therapy and PTSD Treatment in Atlanta, GA
Our therapists at Remain Connected Counseling know that working through trauma or PTSD is not always a straightforward process. It takes time, energy, and dedication to your healing. However, our trauma therapists have seen the massive impacts trauma therapy can have on folks for years after treatment, which makes it so worth it. If you have been struggling with the impacts of trauma or the complexities of PTSD, consider trauma therapy in Atlanta, GA at our Smyrna, GA-based therapy practice, or online therapy in GA. We are here and ready for you when you need support.
Other Services at Remain Connected Counseling
Trauma can be very difficult to live with, but we are here to help you along your journey. It could very well be time to reach out to an experienced therapist, and start trauma therapy in Atlanta, GA today.
However, trauma not be the only thing you need support for. At our Smyrna, GA therapy practice, we offer a variety of mental health services such as teen counseling, couples therapy, online therapy, EMDR, anxiety counseling, depression therapy, and more all through a Christian counseling lens.
Learn more about our team, check out our blog, and contact us for more information. Taking that first step is never easy, but let us do the work and help you see it through.