Working with Trauma

Trauma Therapy

Trauma is a profound emotional response to events that dramatically disrupt our sense of stability and safety.

It can show up from a single distressing incident or through prolonged exposure to adverse situations, deeply affecting our mental, emotional, and physical health.

Understanding the different types of trauma can help us to recognise their unique impact and the importance of tailored approaches to healing.

Types of Trauma

General Trauma occurs from a single disturbing event that shakes one’s sense of safety, such as a violent accident or natural disaster.

Complex Trauma is the result of prolonged exposure to distressing conditions, like chronic abuse or enduring life-threatening situations, which deeply affect psychological health.

Developmental Trauma involves exposure to adverse experiences during critical growth stages in childhood, impacting emotional development and relationship patterns.

Intergenerational Trauma deals with the transmission of trauma responses across generations, where emotional and behavioural patterns are inherited.

Relational Trauma arises from significant disruptions in key relationships, particularly those involving betrayal or abandonment, affecting trust and emotional security.

Common Symptoms of Trauma

Understanding how trauma appears in your everyday life is crucial. It enables you to recognise its adverse impacts while reassuring you that there is nothing inherently wrong with you.

These experiences are responses to past trauma, not flaws in your character.

I am here to help you identify how trauma shows up in your life and guide you towards feeling worthy and whole again.

Behavioural

  • Avoiding reminders of past traumas
  • Engaging in self-sabotage
  • Driven by perfectionism and control
  • Repeating unhelpful patterns
  • People-pleasing

Cognitive

  • Feeling constantly unsafe or on alert
  • Suffering from brain fog and memory lapses
  • Prone to catastrophic thinking
  • Struggling to let go of control, leading to overwhelm

Emotional/Psychological

  • Rapid mood swings and emotional instability
  • Living in a state of hypervigilance
  • Experiencing dissociation and detachment
  • Battling guilt, shame and intense self-criticism

Intergenerational

  • Attempting to break free from inherited parenting styles
  • Projecting unresolved issues onto others
  • Engaging in parentification from a young age
  • Carrying the burden of generational emotional patterns

Physical

  • Dealing with chronic unexplained pain and somatic symptoms
  • Experiencing disrupted sleep and trauma-related nightmares
  • Using substances or food to cope with emotional pain
  • Constant fatigue from chronic stress

Relational

  • Struggling with trust, often feeling anxious or avoidant
  • Reactive and hypersensitive in interactions
  • Experiencing fluctuating attachment styles
  • Repeating dysfunctional relationship dynamics
  • Difficulty in maintaining boundaries

Working with Trauma

Trauma therapy is about healing the whole person. My work integrates both top-down (cognitive) and bottom-up (somatic) approaches to address the ways trauma is stored in the mind and the nervous system.

Who I Work With: I support people who have experienced:

  • Childhood trauma or Developmental Trauma (adverse childhood experiences or neglect)
  • Complex trauma (C-PTSD)
  • Family and Domestic violence
  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Emotional and Relational Trauma
  • Intergenerational Trauma
  • Single-Incident Trauma, such as accidents or loss
  • Neurodivergence (Autism and ADHD) and Trauma
  • Mental Health Concerns (Depression, Anxiety, Eating Disorders, Addiction)

The 3 Steps of Trauma Healing

Utilising a multi-phasic model of trauma treatment, our therapeutic approach is structured into distinct phases that facilitate healing and growth. Here’s how we work together

Step 1
Safety & Stabilisation

Develop somatic and mindfulness skills to manage symptoms and create a sense of safety

Step 2
Processing Trauma

Gently process unresolved trauma so it can take its place in the past, without overwhelming you

Step 3
Integration & Meaning

Build resilience, reconnect with your values, and create a vision for your future