Helping Black Women Heal from Trauma
UNMASKING TRAUMA
Healing from Trauma: Understanding its Emotional Impact
Sometimes, people spend their entire lives thinking, "What's wrong with me?" when they could have been healing themselves by answering, "What happened to me?"
The American Psychological Association defines trauma as "an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape, or natural disaster. Immediately after the event, shock and denial are typical. Longer term reactions include unpredictable emotions, flashbacks, strained relationships, and even physical symptoms like headaches or nausea." In even simpler terms, trauma can be anything that happens in your life that is sudden and unexpected and creates feelings of confusion, stress, sadness, and anger.
Are you ready to put yourself first?
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Are you ready to put yourself first? //
Recognizing Sources of Trauma: Beyond the Typical Causes
Familiar sources of trauma are natural disasters, assault, abuse, the sudden death of a loved one, violence, and medical emergencies. While these are typical sources of trauma, they are not the only causes of trauma. Divorce, breakup, job loss, financial hardships/poverty, moving to a new home, chronic medical conditions, exposure to violence, racism, and working in a hostile environment are also traumatic.
Overcome Trauma and Regain Your Sense of Safety
At Transitions Therapeutic Services, we recognize that all trauma can impact your ability to feel safe and secure. The thoughts, feelings, and responses you have from your experiences can result in a life filled with pain, distress, distrust, and unhappiness. Don't wait for someone to tell you your experience counts as trauma. If you feel that you need help overcoming an experience, allow Transitions Therapeutic Services to be your guide along your healing journey.
Conquer Your Trauma
What happened to you doesn't have to define you. Trauma has a way of making you feel lonely or broken, or unworthy. It convinces you that nobody understands, cares, or can help. Trauma can leave you searching for answers that you may never find. Why did this happen to me? Was it my fault? Why didn't anyone help me? What if it happens again?
Living your life constantly tormented by a single incident (or repeated incidents) is hard. The trauma changes the way you view the world and how you respond to the people around you. Our goal is to help you feel safe again. Through therapy, you can become victorious over the trauma that has made living the life you want harder. Instead of trying to fix you, we work to heal you from the experience hindering you. That healing can be accepting yourself as you are, learning to express your needs, or gaining coping mechanisms to get through grief, recover from loss, and respond to your triggers.
Facing traumatic experiences alone isn't easy. Most people pretend the trauma didn't happen or don't acknowledge how it is impacting their lives. Many people believe they have become numb, but overcoming trauma isn't done by ignoring it. Having someone who can help you understand your trauma and develop new coping methods is life-changing. Transitions Therapy Services is a safe place to reflect on how the trauma is impacting you, how the trauma is hindering you, and how you can implement practices to help you reach your ideal life.
Our Approach to Trauma Therapy
We primarily use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Trauma Focused Therapy to address trauma. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors influence each other, aiming to align them for personal benefit. Trauma Focused Therapy helps identify and challenge negative thoughts related to traumatic experiences while building skills for healthy responses. Following an assessment, we create a customized plan to empower you in taking control of your life. Through self-awareness and self-control development, we aim to help you lead a successful and satisfying life.
Frequently Asked Questions
You may believe therapy can help you but you still have questions about trauma therapy.
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Several common myths about trauma persist in society, including the belief that time alone can heal all wounds and that trauma only arises from major catastrophic events. It is also wrongly assumed that experiencing trauma indicates weakness, disregarding the resilience individuals demonstrate in coping with such experiences.
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The goals of trauma therapy vary depending on the individual's needs and circumstances. Some common goals include reducing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), improving emotional regulation and coping skills, enhancing self-esteem and self-worth, and promoting a sense of safety and empowerment.
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Yes, trauma therapy can be effective for individuals who have experienced complex trauma, which refers to repeated or chronic exposure to traumatic events, such as childhood abuse or neglect. Specialized approaches, such as trauma-focused CBT or dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), are often used in these cases.
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Trauma therapy recognizes the connection between the mind and body and often incorporates techniques that address the physical symptoms of trauma. Approaches such as somatic experiencing and mindfulness-based interventions help individuals become more aware of bodily sensations and learn to regulate their nervous system, reducing physical symptoms such as hypervigilance, muscle tension, and sleep disturbances.
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Yes, trauma therapy can be effective even if the traumatic event occurred many years ago. Traumatic memories can continue to affect individuals long after the event, and therapy can help individuals process and heal from these experiences at any point in their lives.
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While trauma therapy does involve discussing traumatic memories, it is not solely focused on that aspect. We work with individuals to understand and address the thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors that have developed as a result of the trauma. The therapy often includes techniques to help individuals process emotions, regulate their nervous system, and develop healthier coping mechanisms.
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Determining whether you need trauma therapy can be a personal and individual decision. However, there are some signs and indicators that may suggest it could be beneficial for you. If you have experienced a traumatic event or have been exposed to prolonged trauma, and you find that it continues to affect your daily life, emotions, relationships, or overall well-being, trauma therapy may be helpful. Symptoms such as intrusive thoughts, nightmares, flashbacks, avoidance behaviors, hypervigilance, mood swings, anxiety, or depression are common indications that trauma therapy could be beneficial.
Heal from Trauma and Live the Life You Deserve
Start your healing now to escape the trauma from your past and transition to a new way of life. Schedule your appointment today.