Trauma

Trauma, simply put, are challenging experiences which cause long term negative impacts on our views of ourselves, our relationships, and the world around us. They may leave us feeling on edge, irritated, or guilty, and we may notice ourselves spending more time alone, avoiding similar events or reminders of the event, or looking for ways to tune out and numb our feelings. Defining an event as "traumatic" or "traumatizing" tends to refer more to the impact the event has had on us than the specific details of the event itself. Different people will experience the symptoms of trauma from different experiences. All of this is to say that trauma is a very broad category. Many people seek therapy after experiencing something they found to be traumatic or overwhelming. Others seek therapy following, or even during, long term and repeated traumas. Therapy can be a supportive place to process these experiences, identify the ways we have been impacted by them, and work towards freeing ourselves from these impacts. 

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My approach to Trauma is primarily informed by Psychodynamic Theory, Polyvagal Theory, and Narrative Therapy. These approaches emphasize the way trauma impacts us physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially, and they focus treatment on identifying and addressing each of these areas. I see one of the major goals of therapy as identifying the story our painful experiences have taught us to tell (about ourselves, about others, about the world), so that we can rewrite those stories to be more full and life-giving.