Trauma

Helping you free yourself from the weight of trauma and heal.

When someone experiences an intense emotional reaction to a deeply disturbing or shocking event, we say they are suffering from trauma.

Some events that may lead to trauma involve, but are not limited to:

  • Death

  • Fear for own or another’s life

  • Violence 

  • Emotional abuse

  • Sexual assault 

  • Natural disasters

It’s important to know that trauma is not just the result of being the victim of a distressing event. It can also occur if a person witnesses someone else in that situation, or hears about the details of that incident.

An example could be seeing someone drown, or police officers being repeatedly exposed to details of a murder.

Types of Trauma

Trauma can primarily be classified into two types:

Acute trauma

Acute trauma occurs right after a disturbing incident and involves feelings of denial and uncontrollable thoughts related to the event. These feelings may last for a short time before finally settling down.

Chronic trauma

On the other hand, chronic trauma occurs over a long period of time and involves repeated exposure to the event (for example, domestic violence). If left untreated, chronic trauma may develop into a condition more commonly known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

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Symptoms of PTSD

Some of the most prominent symptoms of PTSD include:

  • Flashbacks

  • Nightmares

  • Insomnia or other sleep disturbances

  • Hypervigilance

  • Dissociation 

  • Guilt and shame

  • Loss of interest

  • Depressed mood

  • Irritability and/or increased anger

  • Avoidance of triggers related to the event

An important note: Clinicians at Reclaim & Rise Counselling cannot diagnose any mental health disorder. If you are interested in being formally evaluated and diagnosed you should speak to your family physician who can refer you to a psychiatrist or psychologist.

Impact of PTSD

PTSD can seriously impact people’s ability to lead their day-to-day life. It can impact their present relationships, as well as their ability to form meaningful relationships in the future.

Repeated exposure to triggers i.e. people, sounds, or smells related to a traumatic incident, as well as more enduring forms of trauma from childhood, may develop into complex PTSD (also called C-PTSD). 

As an off-shoot of PTSD, complex PTSD involves the same symptoms, but may also result in higher levels of:

  • Negativity and mistrust 

  • Feelings of helplessness 

  • Social isolation

  • Substance abuse and/or reckless behaviour

  • Suicidal ideation

Treatment for PTSD

Trauma doesn’t make you strong. Your fight for survival does.

Despite everything you have read so far, there is hope. PTSD can be managed. It takes time, effort, and persistence, and is not easy. But you can turn your life around and recover from trauma.

Some of the main treatments for PTSD involve cognitive processing therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

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We Can Help 

Located at 206 Ontario Street Stratford, we are local to Tavistock, New Hamburg, and the Kitchener-Waterloo area. Our clinicians also offer remote therapy across Ontario so that you can access the support you need - no matter where you are!

To get started you can fill out a contact form, call (226) 215-4244, or book an appointment online with one of our counsellors by clicking below.

We’re looking forward to supporting you!