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Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Abuse.
The month of June is typically marked by laid back vibes, laughter, fun in the sun and lots of things to celebrate; school ending and summer beginning, family vacations, beach days and flip flops, cookouts, family gatherings, and the list goes on and on. But June also is the month that has been designated as “PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) Awareness Month” – and those who have been affected by this disorder can testify that it is NOT a celebratory matter.
PTSD is a disorder that has no preference in who it affects; with millions of children, young people, and adults impacted each year. People who have been affected by the disorder all have one thing in common – they’ve been exposed to a traumatic event. However, each person’s reaction to their experienced trauma may differ. For some people, involuntary and intrusive memories of the trauma may be the most prevalent symptom and attempting to avoid thinking about or having feelings about the trauma may prove unsuccessful. Individuals may also be fighting negative changes in their mood states and thoughts and/or increased reactivity in situations that previously didn’t trigger them. In other words, PTSD can cause suffering day in and day out leaving individuals with little to no control over how their brain is responding to their external environment while also being tortured internally by their own thoughts and emotions.
Although PTSD can be life-altering, there is help and there is hope. There has been much research dedicated to treating individuals with PTSD and a number of treatments have been proven to be successful, including Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Prolonged Exposure (PE), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). Hopeful Horizons’ therapists use two evidence-based treatment modalities to assist victims/survivors of child abuse, domestic violence and sexual assault: Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) which has been approved for use in children ages 3-18, and Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), which is provided to adults. In my experience as a clinician, I’ve witnessed some of these interventions work wonders and I can say with the utmost confidence; these treatments can work!
At Hopeful Horizons, we understand the impact that trauma has in our client’s lives and the community at large and we are dedicated to the cause of ending abuse for both children and adults. Our hope is to change lives in the most empowering ways. For those carrying trauma: we see you, we hear you even when your voice may not be able to bring about the words, and we hold space for you in our work. We want you to know that you can and will get better with the right treatment. And for those who haven’t been affected by a traumatic event, we encourage you to hold space for those who have. Even in your celebratory moments you can show compassion and care for survivors of trauma and those coping with PTSD by standing with them in their journey of healing.