The memories of what happened won't leave you alone.
You feel like your past is holding you back.
You can't sleep, you feel depressed, or are always on edge.
Something has to change. You need to heal.
Trauma Therapy CAN Help
As a trauma therapist, I can help quiet the noise of the memories of your traumatic experiences.
Trauma therapy, or trauma treatment, can be what finally works so you can move forward from the past. So far, you feel like nothing has helped. Maybe you ask yourself, "why should trauma therapy be any different?" Or maybe you think at this point, anything will be better than how you feel right now; anxious, depressed, scared.
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As a trauma therapist, I will hold on to hope for you. I know that PTSD treatment and trauma therapy work. Why? Because I have seen many people come into my office wondering why they are even trying, only to leave feeling better about life, themselves, and their future.
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Trauma therapy is some of the most intense work I do as a therapist. But it is some of the most rewarding work I do. PTSD treatment and trauma therapy can be hard for the client; yet, it works!
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Post traumatic stress disorder treatment or trauma treatment is the best thing you can do to help relieve your PTSD symptoms and trauma symptoms. As a PTSD therapist, I work hard to provide you with the chance to change, and the hope and belief that you can feel good again.
Was what happened to me actually a traumatic event?
You would be surprised how common that question actually is. It is easy to convince yourself that what you experienced "wasn't that bad, it could have been worse," or "other people there weren't bothered by it, why should I be?" Those thoughts, and others you may have are likely an effort to convince yourself you didn't experience trauma.
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A serious car accident. Seeing a friend or loved one die unexpectedly. Being severely injured. Surviving a natural disaster. A rape. A sexual assault. Domestic abuse. A trauma is any event you experience that is beyond your ability to cope. If it was a bad experience, and how you normally cope hasn't worked, it was likely a traumatic experience.
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There isn't only one type of trauma. Maybe you experienced an acute trauma where the event happened only once and it was intense. Or, maybe you experienced complex trauma such as surviving repeated abuse. There is also such a thing as shared trauma like 9-11 or the Covid-19 pandemic where many people experienced the trauma together. Vicarious trauma also exists. This is when you are overwhelmed beyond your normal ability to cope when you hear about and work with others who have experienced trauma. These are all trauma.
PTSD Symptoms
Knowing when the effects of trauma have become PTSD is essential in the healing process.
When you have experienced something overwhelming (i.e. a traumatic experience), you might recover on your own in a short period of time like a couple of weeks or months. When it takes longer, and other symptoms start to set in like nightmares, avoidance of places, anxiety, depression, and fear, and these are keeping you from living your life, you may be experiencing PTSD or post traumatic stress disorder.
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As an anxiety counselor, I look for four areas of PTSD symptoms that indicate someone is experiencing post traumatic stress disorder symptoms as a result of traumatic events. Those four areas are:
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Intrusive, unwanted, negative thoughts.
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These could be memories you didn't try to remember but have come up, nightmares that are about the trauma or remind you of the the trauma, or even flashbacks where you feel as though you're experiencing the traumatic event again.​
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Avoiding situations that remind you of the traumatic event.
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Logically, we want to avoid anything that is uncomfortable. When you've experienced a trauma, it's not uncommon to avoid things that remind you of the traumatic event. This could be people, places, conversations, or objects. Remember, avoidance will maintain your PTSD symptoms, not remove them.​
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Distorted ideas and negative self-talk.
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​When someone experiences PTSD, it is common for them to have thoughts such as being a bad person, guilt, shame, or persistent fear. These thoughts make healing difficult and often will result in isolation from friends and loved ones.
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Risky or out of character behavior.
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A common behavior from this category for someone who experiences PTSD is anger outbursts. Other behaviors could be reckless behavior, being hyperaware of their surroundings, trouble with sleep, being easily startled, or trouble with concentration.
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These are only some of the symptoms of PTSD. To learn more about PTSD symptoms, check out this blog post I wrote.
What To Expect In Trauma Therapy
Trauma therapy and PTSD treatment typically consist of three areas of work: building trust with your counselor, developing grounding skills, and processing the traumatic experience.
Any type of therapy will require a trust building phase. This can take anywhere from a couple of therapy sessions, to a couple months of therapy sessions. Everyone is different. The important thing to remember is, trauma therapy doesn't "fix" things overnight. It takes time to heal from trauma.
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Once you and your trauma therapist have developed trust, you will then start to work on grounding skills. This is an important step. The grounding skills you learn will help you cope with the third step of trauma therapy or PTDS treatment. Without these grounding skills, you would likely become so distressed in session it could actually make things worse. This is why it is so important to trust this part of the process of trauma therapy and PTSD treatment.
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The third step is often the most difficult. This is when you will begin to go back through your traumatic experiences and work to process the trauma. Processing can look different depending on the specific type of trauma therapy or PTSD treatment approach your trauma therapist uses. In all trauma therapy approaches, processing techniques work to bring those traumatic experiences to the forefront of your mind either verbally (talking about the experience) or emotionally (remembering the experience in your mind only). At this point, those grounding skills come in handy if it becomes overwhelming. Once the trauma is at the forefront of your mind, it will be processed in ways specific to the trauma therapy approach. Some of those approaches could use eye movement, breath exercises, exploring meaning, discussing effects on your life, and others.
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It may not be possible to completely "erase" the trauma memories from your mind but you can find relief from the effects those memories have on you. This way, you can feel like you again and enjoy life as you deserve.
What is Holding You Back from Starting Trauma Therapy or PTSD Treatment?
Seeing a trauma therapist for trauma therapy or PTSD treatment can feel intimidating. Don't let that fear hold you back from treating your PTSD symptoms.
Picture yourself in 6 months. Do you see yourself feeling better with fewer PTSD symptoms? Is what you're doing now going to get you to where you want to be? Don't let your past trauma hold you back! See if trauma therapy or PTSD treatment with me at Ridgeline Counseling could benefit you.
Start Trauma Therapy and PTSD Treatment in Pocatello
I know that asking for help can be hard. Making your first therapy appointment is a HUGE step. I try to make that process of starting trauma therapy or PTSD treatment as simple as possible.
Step 1:
Reach out to
Ridgeline Counseling
Step 2:
Meet for a Trauma Therapy Consultation
Step 3:
Begin Overcoming Your Trauma
I have multiple ways to be contacted. You can call, email, text, or request an appointment through my client portal. We will then set a time to meet for your initial consultation either over the phone, video, or in person.
I understand how important it is to find a counselor you are comfortable with. So, I offer a free 15 minute consultation where you can ask any questions you may have. This is your chance to see if we're a good fit.
Together, we will develop a plan to face your trauma head on and learn to cope with its symptoms. I try to tailor treatment to your individual needs, my experience as a therapist, and what I know helps trauma and PTSD.
Not Quite Ready to Start Trauma Therapy or PTSD Treatment?
Check out these blog posts about trauma, PTSD, trauma therapy, PTSD treatment, and PTSD symptoms.
Trauma and PTSD is one of my specialties. As a result, I enjoy sharing information about how to cope with trauma and PTSD, what PTSD symptoms can look like, and how trauma therapy can be useful. Browse these blog posts I've written to find some helpful information about trauma and PTSD.
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Blog post 1
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Blog post 2
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Blog post 3
Other Mental Health Services at Ridgeline Counseling
Anxiety treatment isn't the only service I offer. Life is hard and we rarely experience one problem at a time. I work with a variety of mental health concerns. At Ridgeline Counseling in Pocatello, I also offer depression counseling, anxiety therapy, bi-polar disorder counseling, borderline personality disorder therapy, couples and marriage counseling, and more! I am here to help.