[DelusionsDaily]

So i hear alot about trauma therapy...what is it? I mean besides the obvious. How do you know if you need trauma therapy? Does it work even decades after the trauma?

Traumas?

Sudden loss of sister when I was 9. (lots of people close dying growing up)
4 incidents of assault(sexual in nature) i minimize it big time!

What are some common therapies used for trauma?

I see a cognitive behaviorist. We work on ways to help me feel stable and safe in the face of flashbacks, and interrupting the abusive self talk inside my head.

My T is a trauma T. We do a LOT of talking about the things that happened...sometimes re-living them which is hard, but she is trained to help me through all that and the flash backs and stuff--and trying to re-frame them, see them from a new perspective, talking thru' stuff... helping me put them behind me. She has a LOT more skills than other "regular" T's I've seen... she knows lots of "tricks" for getting at the root of the problem, getting me through if i have a hard time.

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by MELISSSAD81

How do you know if you need trauma therapy?

Hopefully, your T will know by talking to you if you have PTSD and could benefit from trauma therapy. I say "hopefully" because my first T never mentioned PTSD or trauma to me, and she was not a trauma therapist. So maybe she didn't know what to look for? My current T has a lot of experience in trauma, and so he picked up on my PTSD symptoms right away. (It makes me wonder if Ts just see their own pet areas in every client...)

Originally Posted by MELISSAD81

Does it work even decades after the trauma?

Yes it can work even decades later. But people have a wide range of success in treatment.

Originally Posted by MELISSAD81

What are some common therapies used for trauma?

Some my T has mentioned that he uses or has used are:
EMDR
Psychodrama
Lifespan Integration Therapy
Ego State Therapy
Somatic Experiencing Therapy

(We used mainly EMDR and Ego State Therapy for my trauma, with a bit of somatic experiencing and lifespan integration thrown into the mix.)

Besides those I listed, there are other types of trauma therapy too.

I think the more different therapies for trauma the T knows, the better, because any one technique will not fit all.

Originally Posted by MELISSSAD81

So i hear alot about trauma therapy...what is it? I mean besides the obvious. How do you know if you need trauma therapy? Does it work even decades after the trauma?

Traumas?

Sudden loss of sister when I was 9. (lots of people close dying growing up)
4 incidents of assault(sexual in nature) i minimize it big time!

What are some common therapies used for trauma?

I guess I started therapy FOR trauma. I knew I had to deal with the things that happened to me growing up, although going into therapy, I never would have used the word "trauma" to describe it.

My therapy is very fluid and organic. T doesn't use any specific "techniques" (that I know of). It's mostly us talking, although over the years, we've sat together on the floor, we've done lots of art, I've written things to him and he's written back, etc. T has so much trust in me and my "internal wisdom" and follows my lead when I feel like I want to try something besides "just" talking.

For me, this has been a good fit. It's slow going, and maybe there would be a faster way of doing it, but I like the gentleness of it, and I know I am healing, slowly but surely.

And you will too

Originally Posted by sunrise

Hopefully, your T will know by talking to you if you have PTSD and could benefit from trauma therapy. I say "hopefully" because my first T never mentioned PTSD or trauma to me, and she was not a trauma therapist. So maybe she didn't know what to look for? My current T has a lot of experience in trauma, and so he picked up on my PTSD symptoms right away. (It makes me wonder if Ts just see their own pet areas in every client...)

I know this isn't true for my T. He specializes in working with obese people on weight loss. He said he didn't notice, however, that I had gained 20 pounds during my first six months in therapy. [Really T?? How could you NOT notice that?] He asked me if I wanted to talk about weight loss with him because he did a lot of work with it, and I had no clue that was something he did, and further DID NOT want to discuss my body issues with him!

[Perna]

Trauma therapy is a focus on specific traumas and their aftermath in your life rather than a more general look at what might be causing some of your symptoms; such as anxiety or depression; or work on managing a specific medical difficulty such as bipolar or depression, where one is having difficulty staying stable and it is unduly influencing the rest of one's life.

[JustWannaDisappear]

I originally start therapy for trauma 10yrs ago. She specialized in EMDR and I wasn't comfortable enough to try it. I think the trauma was too new and I was terrified of what would happen while doing this. I still don't fully know what is involved with EMDR.

My current T is training in Somatic Experiencing. We started SE after she completed some of her first trainings. She told me since she was new at it, I needed to tell her if something she's doing isn't working. Also if I get too activated. She gives me enough time at the end of session to make sure I'm okay to leave.

I do hold back a bit and I'm trying hard to get more comfortable with everything. It just feels too vulnerable sometimes.

[amandalouise]

here where I live Trauma therapy is talking about the trauma - talking about the details of what happened, any fears, anxiety concerning the trauma and then finding solutions to the problems created by the trauma. the solutions can be many different things - journal writing, grounding, ways to relax, stress reducing techniques, management skills... some of these solutions and ways to help reduce stress are actual therapy techniques like art therapy, music therapy, exposure therapy, light therapy, hypnosis, CBT, EMDR, roll playing, ....

your therapist can help you discover which trauma work (way of working through trauma) is right for you.