Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Upset woman talking to therapist - Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is available at The Therapy Centre with locations in Toronto, Oakville and Hamilton (GTA)

Trauma occurs during or after a significant distressing experience or multiple experiences. Commonly, trauma can leave a person feeling like they are in shambles, needing to be pieced back together and that they are alone in their suffering, often referred to as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). However, they are not alone because trauma is a common occurrence but individuals may withdraw and not want to talk with others. Each person experiences trauma in their own way and what may be traumatic for one person, may not affect another the same way or at all.

Common Signs and Symptoms of Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD:

  • Emotional overwhelm
  • Anxiety, Panic Attacks
  • Depression/Hopelessness
  • Irritability
  • Apathy
  • Numbing
  • Dissociation; feeling unreal
  • Insomnia
  • Nightmares, flashbacks
  • Hypervigilance
  • Concentration difficulties
  • Self-destructive behaviour
  • Substance use
  • Eating disorders
broken bowl
Kintsugi is a Japanese art where a cracked or broken bowl is pieced together with gold. This can symbolize a trauma survivor’s healing journey, as they piece themselves together: they have strength, resilience, and beauty.
Image taken from: https://esprit-kintsugi.com/en/quest-ce-que-le-kintsugi/ (opens in a new window)

During a trauma, a person’s brain and nervous system is affected leaving some people questioning, “why can’t I just get over this?”. There are many kinds of therapies that help trauma survivors learn to heal, cope, and thrive again. Therapy helps survivors process their trauma by accessing parts of their brain that was affected by the trauma and it also helps to regulate their nervous systems.

Clinicians at The Therapy Centre use many trauma treatment approaches including; Cognitive Processing Therapy, Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) and Psychodynamic Therapy.