Treatment for Trauma and Dissociation

Understanding Trauma

Trauma is deeply personal and can leave lasting effects on the mind, body, and spirit. It can result from a single distressing event or a series of overwhelming experiences and may occur at any point in life—childhood, adulthood, or both. Trauma can arise from events like accidents, injuries, loss, abuse, neglect, violence, natural disasters, or witnessing harm. It can also include the things that didn’t happen but should have (absence), as much as what did (presence).

In our first meeting, I’ll ask about trauma—whether it’s sexual, physical, emotional, verbal, medical, racial, cultural, gender-based, or religious. Trauma can show up in different ways, impacting emotional, mental, physical, relational, and spiritual well-being.

Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress

Post-traumatic symptoms vary and might include:

Re-experiencing the trauma: Flashbacks, nightmares, or unwanted intrusive memories.
Avoidance: Avoiding thoughts, feelings, or reminders of the trauma.
Negative thoughts or feelings: Feeling disconnected, struggling to experience joy, losing interest in activities, self-blame, or a negative outlook on yourself or the world.
Hyperarousal: Trouble sleeping, concentrating, being easily startled, or feeling constantly on edge.
Emotional distress: Anxiety, sadness, irritability, or emotional numbness.
Physical symptoms: Chronic pain, fatigue, or unexplained health issues.

Trauma and Dissociation

Sometimes, trauma leads to dissociation—a mental state where you feel disconnected from your thoughts, emotions, body, surroundings, or even your sense of self. It’s a protective response to overwhelming experiences. Dissociation can look like:

Feeling detached: A sense of being outside of your body or disconnected from reality.
Memory gaps or time loss: Struggling to recall parts of the traumatic event or periods of time.
Inner plurality: Experiencing different parts of yourself or hearing inner voices.
Emotional numbness: Feeling emotionally flat or detached from life’s experiences.

Dissociation is an adaptive, though often confusing, response to trauma. It’s something that can be understood and healed with support. Before starting trauma treatment, I screen for dissociative symptoms and may conduct a thorough assessment, which helps guide the pace of treatment and sets the stage for the healing process ahead.

I often explain to clients that dissociation exists on a spectrum. For example, mild dissociation like “driving on autopilot” or getting lost in a task is common. But for some, dissociative symptoms can be more intense and disruptive.

Preparing for Trauma Treatment

Whether dissociation is present or not, we take time to ensure you’re well-prepared with the tools and resources needed to begin trauma processing. This preparation includes:

Grounding or centering techniques
Tolerating distress
Containing or setting aside overwhelming situations
Accessing a sense of inner calm

Trauma Treatment Approaches

In my practice, I specialize in trauma treatment using evidence-based and innovative approaches tailored to your unique needs. These include:

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Therapy: A highly effective method that helps process and resolve traumatic memories. EMDR reduces emotional intensity, strengthens adaptive beliefs, and clears associated body sensations, allowing you to move forward.
Ego State Therapy (EST): This approach explores and facilitates communication between different parts of the self, addressing conflicts that may contribute to trauma symptoms.
Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR): A cutting-edge technique that targets deep, somatic imprints of trauma stored in the brainstem, facilitating profound healing at a foundational level.

There are other therapies for trauma, such as Prolonged Exposure (PE) and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), but I lean toward methods that prioritize safety and gradual processing, meeting each client’s unique pace and needs.

Healing Is Possible

Healing from trauma requires strength, courage, and support. You don’t have to face it alone. Together, we can build your resources, process your experiences, and strengthen your resilience. We’ll create a path toward a more fulfilling life. If you’re ready to begin your healing journey, I’m here to help. Feel free to reach out to learn more or schedule an appointment.

My Professional Journey

Before private practice, I worked exclusively with individuals experiencing chronic pain, many of whom had a history of trauma. Some had been in car accidents or experienced childhood abuse, and while not all of their pain was trauma-related, it still played a role in their healing process. Others had suffered workplace injuries or accidents that were both physically and emotionally traumatic. Recognizing the need for specialized trauma care, I sought formal training in trauma treatment and, later, in addressing dissociation.