Impacts of Trauma and Treatment Options Available

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, a ‘traumatic event is a shocking, scary, or dangerous experience that can affect someone emotionally and physically’. The impact from a trauma can present in multiple ways. Some of these include feeling intense emotions and experiences at a heightened state. Furthermore, an individual can also have the opposite effect and feel disconnected from their emotions, which can also be referred to as, “feeling numb”. Trauma can impact a decline in concentration, inadequate sleep, cause lack of connectedness within relationships, and can have an individual ruminate on the traumatic event that occurred. 

There are many benefits to seeking out professional help if you have experienced a traumatic event in your life. Some of these benefits can include finding clarity and understanding within the trauma, as well as improving emotional regulation by learning coping skills and healing the internal system on an emotional, physical, and psychological level. Professionals can utilize trauma focused modalities to help through this healing journey, such as EMDR and TF-CBT. 

EMDR or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is an evidence based therapy that focuses on reducing or eliminating the distress of an event so that you can reprocess the memory into a healthier way. EMDR focuses on reducing somatic responses and alleviating any negative belief systems held within the system by using bilateral stimulation (BLS). Bilateral stimulation (BLS) is a natural healing capability our brain is fond of due to BLS occurring when we are in the REM cycle of sleep. EMDR is a beneficial treatment method due to it being a neurological approach versus an approach like ‘talk therapy’. This neurological approach alleviates the individual from having to describe every detail of the traumatic event(s) which reduces retraumatization. 

TF-CBT or Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is specific to the child and adolescent population. It focuses on the psychological needs of this younger population after experiencing a trauma event(s) by utilizing psychoeducation, cognitive coping skills, trauma narrative, grounding strategies, and gradual exposure therapy. There is a collaborative approach with this modality with the child or adolescent caregiver as well. 

At Lexington Counseling and Psychiatry, we have providers that are trained in trauma focused therapies and can offer specialties such as EMDR and TF-CBT. Call our office at 859.338.0466 to schedule an appointment with one of our providers if you are ready to start your healing journey. Our current offices are located in Lexington, Frankfort, and Richmond, KY. We have been trusted mental health professionals in Central Kentucky for over 22 years! 

Articles and Resources:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22641-emdr-therapy

https://www.apa.org/topics/psychotherapy/emdr-therapy-ptsd

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand_tx/emdr.asp

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3951033/

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/coping-with-traumatic-events

https://tfcbt.org/

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4396183/