People in all stages of life, from infancy to adolescence to adulthood to advanced age, can experience trauma. Trauma can take many forms, including physical, emotional and sexual abuse, as well as natural disasters, violence and combat, whether directly experienced or witnessed. Neglect by parents in childhood, by partners, family, friends and caregivers in adulthood can also be traumatic. Persons who have been affected by trauma and/or neglect often feel distressed, anxious, distrustful, ashamed, guilty; they may blame themselves; they often feel isolated in their suffering. Lack of validation, whether of the person or the traumatic experience, can interfere with establishing a sense of identity, can cause people to question the truth of their experience and can make relationships, especially intimate ones, feel difficult and sometimes impossible.

What some refer to as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or complex trauma can manifest with feeling always on guard, easily startled, with re-experiencing the trauma through flashbacks and nightmares. Persons affected by trauma may avoid people, social events, or situations so that they do not risk feeling undone by something unexpected. It can come to feel as if one is not living life. In order to be able to recover, persons who have been traumatized first have to be able to feel safe. I work with my patients to establish a sense of safety. This often includes addressing physical danger, self-harming behaviors and creating more choices for dealing with overwhelming emotions and unhealthy relationships.

We will work collaboratively to begin to understand the traumatic event(s) and the effects – both on you and on the way you experience the world and others. Together we will question whether your sense of self, experience of others, and view of the world are valid or useful. By coming to understand both yourself and the traumatic event(s) in different ways, we can begin to create a more accurate narrative that honors your experience. Developing new skills to manage difficult emotions will help to foster and sustain healthy relationships and allow you to function more effectively in the world and to live in a more satisfying way.