Trauma Recovery

There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds.
―Laurell K. Hamilton, Mistral’s Kiss

Do you have memories of past events that plague you? Are these memories eliciting unwanted reactions that affect your everyday life?
Do you find yourself getting physically ill often, or doing behaviors which are self-sabotaging?
Do people around you complain that you often treat them unfairly?

You don’t have to live like this!

Trauma is something that affects everyone. Whether you or someone you know has been through a traumatic event, the impact is widespread. Trauma occurs when negative events overwhelm the individual’s ability to cope with the situation (Paige et al. 2017). It can seem like the effects of the trauma may never go away, because the coping skills built around the event are not working. When we have been traumatized, we may or may not consciously remember what happened. If we do not remember, the traumatic incident(s) will come out in one, or two, or three of three ways: One way is through our physical health, by lowering our immune system. The second way is by finding fault in those close to us, and the third way is through self-sabotage.

The scope of trauma is wide because there are so many different types of traumas. The prevalence of lifetime sexual abuse in women ranges from 15% to 25%, and in 2008 it was found that 18.5% of veterans returning from the line of duty, were experiencing symptoms that meet criteria for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Depression (SAMHSA, 2017). Just as there are different types of traumas, there are also various symptoms that may occur as a result of trauma.

Symptoms of trauma might include:

Distressing memories
Flashbacks
Avoidance of reminders of the trauma
Inability to experience positive emotions
Irritable behavior
Sleep disturbance
Exaggerated startle response
Hypervigilance
Anxiety/Panic attacks
Depression
Addictions

These symptoms can be very distressing and life-altering. If you or a loved one are suffering from any of these symptoms, do not wait for things to change. Schedule your appointment today, and we can start working to alleviate these symptoms and improve the quality of your life.

If traumatic symptoms are left untreated, they can cause dysfunction across many domains. Negative outcomes, like lower quality of life and physical health problems, are associated with the severity of Post-Traumatic Stress (Kugler et al. 2016). Once Post-Traumatic stress is causing impairment in the major areas of your life, like in your work or social interactions, it is becoming disordered, and requires effective treatment (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).

Common trauma disorders include (DSM-5):

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Acute Stress Disorder
Adjustment Disorder

Trauma-focused psychotherapy is evidence-based, and focuses on the original event(s) as well as the consequences associated with the symptoms (Park et al. 2017). Sometimes medications are also prescribed to aid the process of healing, however, some people prefer to use treatment that does not include medication. This is dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

Relational causes of trauma

Domestic violence causes far more pain than the visible marks of bruises and scars. It is devastating to be abused by someone that you love and think loves you in return.
―Dianne Feinstein

Do you feel unsafe with your partner? Do you feel hopeless and believe that your partner controls your every move or behavior?

It is possible to get out of this hopelessness!

On average, 20 people per minute are victims of physical abuse by an intimate partner in the United States (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2017). Although trauma may be caused by a wide range of negative life events, some of the most common traumatic symptoms are rooted in relationship problems.

Domestic violence, or Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), is sadly common in the United States, and California is no exception. Domestic violence occurs when one partner engages in behaviors to maintain control and power over his/her partner (The Domestic Violence Hotline, 2017). This can cause the victim of the abuse to feel hopeless and under his/her partner’s control. There are different ways abuse can occur in these relationships, including:

Physical abuse (e.g., hitting, kicking, pushing, throwing objects)
Emotional abuse (e.g., name calling, bullying, humiliating your partner in front of others, insulting, isolating from family and friends)
Sexual abuse (e.g., forcing into unwanted sexual behaviors, insulting in sexual ways, reproductive coercion by sabotaging birth control methods, refusing to use a condom)
Financial abuse (e.g., preventing access to finances, stealing money, using finances to intimidate)
Digital abuse (e.g., demanding passwords, uses social media to monitor victim)

Trauma in the form of domestic violence generally begins with a partner slowly engaging in abusive behaviors, and then promising to be better and never do it again, and/or pretending that it never occurred. Another way this occurs is that the perpetrator begins to gaslight the survivor or make him/her question their sanity. This leads to a cycle where the survivor feels stuck in an unhealthy relationship. It is common for survivors to feel as if they deserved the abuse they experienced, but this is part of the manipulation that the perpetrator actively engages in.

It is difficult to talk about trauma as domestic violence because a person that was previously trustworthy, has shown themselves to be harmful, and this behavior is so surprising that the survivor often goes into shock and denial. Trauma related domestic violence is also a predictor for higher rates of depression and suicidal behavior (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2017). Responses to domestic violence can be severe, and can truly interfere with living a happy life. When safety is consistently threatened, and helplessness is an ongoing emotion, the likelihood of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is much higher (Salcioglu, Urhan, Pirinccioglu, & Aydin, 2017). Survivors of domestic abuse can have symptoms of PTSD, because they have felt so little control over their lives, and have felt unsafe for long periods of time.

If these symptoms align with something you or a loved one has experienced, we can help.

With the help of our Multidimensional Relational Therapy model (MDRT), Trauma recovery is entirely possible!

References:

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Kugler, B. B., Phares, V., Salloum, A., & Storch, E. A. (2016). The role of anxiety sensitivity in the relationship between posttraumatic stress symptoms and negative outcomes in trauma-exposed adults . Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 29(2), 187-201.

Paige, M., DeVore, J., Chang, C. Y., & Whisenhunt, J., (2017). The trauma-competent clinician: A qualitative model of knowledge, skills, and attitudes supporting Adlerian-based trauma psychotherapy. Journal of Individual Psychology, 73(1), 8-37.

Park, C.L., Currier, J. M., Harris, I. J., & Slattery, J. M. (2017). Trauma, meaning, and spirituality: Translating research into clinical practice. American Psychological Association, 6, 55-73.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2017). Trauma and Violence. Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/trauma-violence