TRAUMA & STRESS
I help trauma survivors get control over their symptoms so that they can feel safe and reclaim their lives.
You feel overwhelmed and your body seems outside of your control.
Your symptoms stop you from doing ordinary things, and you avoid certain places because you’re frightened of a panic attack.
At other times you feel numb and zone out for periods of time. It’s scary because you can’t predict it. Your mind goes blank and you can’t think or talk. In worse cases, you don’t know how you got somewhere. Read more on dissociation here.
You may be scared or angry with someone in your family, at work or in your friendship group. You want to be in a relationship, but for some reason it’s frightening.
“What’s the bravest thing you’ve ever said?” Asked the boy. “Help” said the horse. “Asking for help isn’t giving up” said the horse”. “It’s refusing to give up”
(Mackesy, C. 2019, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse)
Psychotherapy will help you to:
Feel safer in your body and in relationships
Understand and untangle your triggers, so that they don’t happen as often
Learn about the brain and the nervous system’s response to trauma
Build a safe, containing space for you to process the emotions trapped in your body
Put the brakes on flashbacks, uncontrollable emotions and gain back control
Help your body and mind to separate out what is happening now from what happened then
Decrease symptoms, so you can rest properly and get better sleep
Decrease somatic symptoms that may be linked to chronic stress, such as IBS, UC, Chronic Fatigue, or Migraines
Piece together what happened to you, so that you can form a coherent narrative
Process the trauma/s so they stay in the past and free you up to live in the here and now
START YOUR JOURNEY TO ACHIEVE THE LIFE THAT YOU WANT
If you can relate and feel ready to work with a therapist, book your free 15-minute telephone consultation to talk about how I can help you.
FAQs
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Trauma is complex and is rarely caused by a one off event. However, how we respond to a traumatic event is often the key piece in how the event will effect us long term. Our response depends on how well we are able to regulate ourselves and feel and understand our feelings.
Single event trauma can be things like sexual assault or an earthquake, where you felt overwhelmed and alone and at risk of death. Your body responded by going into one of the following biological states: fight-flight, fawn, freeze, or collapse. It may be you are experiencing flashbacks or recurrent nightmares.
Our capacity to manage and recover from one off traumatic events is dependent on our psychological and emotional character. How able we are to talk about our feelings and feel supported, how safe we generally feel in the world, and how resilient we are.
If PTSD symptoms persist for longer than three months, you will need treatment.
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Complex post traumatic stress disorder is the result of prolonged exposure to traumatic experiences, with a sense of there being no escape. This can be due to psychological or physical abuse or neglect by your parents or main carers, partner, or ongoing bullying.
However, it can also be more nuanced. It’s possible you may not be able to identify a specific traumatic event. In developmental trauma, it can be a series of ongoing micro mis-attunements or criticisms, or ongoing small rejections, that all add up to feeling unwanted or unloved, which is traumatic.
Read about the difference between single episode trauma and developmental trauma in my blog here.
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The work is always done at your own pace. The first priority is to help you feel safe in the therapy room and then to help you to stabilise and manage your symptoms.
Once this phase is reached, we can work on creating a coherent narrative to understand what happened to you, and address the traumatic emotions and fragments of memory that may be stuck in your body and mind, causing you symptoms.
We will explore unconscious dynamics, looking at how your past experiences shape the way you are now, within yourself, and in your relationships and environment.
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The initial assessment consultation:
75 minutes - £150 -165.
Ongoing therapy sessions:
50 minutes - £90 - £110.
I have a certain number of low fee spots available. If you require a reduced fee, or are a psychotherapy or counselling trainee, please ask about my availability.
I review fees annually at the end of the financial year, and may increase fees in line with inflation.
For more information on other therapy specialisms see
Anxiety & Perfectionism | Depression & Stuckness | Self-esteem & Relationships
IF THERAPY IS NOT FOR YOU JUST NOW
My mission is to help people thrive rather than just survive, whether it be through 1:1 sessions or by sharing information to help you on your journey from where you are.
Take a look at my free educational content on my blog to help you to feel more confident about how to navigate your mental health and self-care.
