You don’t need to be defined by what’s happened to you.
Trauma, & PTSD:
What’s Your Story?
Are you constantly “on alert”—bracing for an “attack” anytime, anywhere?
Do you feel you’ve reached a point where almost anything can trigger a panic attack?
Trauma and PTSD are much more common than most people knew, but we now have more tools to help.
Are you holding four ACEs—or more?
Is your ACE score below 4? Knowing your ACE score may be as important to your health as your blood pressure or A1C!
Whether you decide to work with me or another trauma specialist, if you struggle with the aftereffects of trauma, I encourage you to follow through and get the help you need. It can give back what the trauma took away—and you deserve to feel safe again.
A Personal Story
One morning during the first week of July in 1972 I was walking across the pedestrian bridge over Interstate 94 in Minneapolis, getting caught up with a close friend I hadn’t seen since he dropped out of college a couple years earlier. It was a warm, lazy day, and we were swapping stories, getting updates on girlfriends, and giving each other a good-natured hard time as we got reconnected. Suddenly several sharp “pop, pop, pop” sounds cut through the morning air and I went down hard on the sidewalk . . .
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My friend had me pinned to the concrete, and as I twisted my head around I could see he was “all business”—intensely scanning the area as he insisted I “stay down.” I soon figured out he was scanning for muzzle flashes that would have given away the location of the shooter, and making sure I was safe.
Luckily that day there was no shooter, just a group of teenage boys—not much younger than us—who had started their 4th of July early, setting off a string of firecrackers. But their innocent fun instantly transported my good friend back to Viet Nam where just a few weeks earlier he had been fighting to keep himself and his squad alive long enough to make it home. The whole experience couldn’t have lasted more than a couple minutes, but it left me spun up--complete with a racing heart, shortness of breath, and a heightened level of alertness I now would label “hypervigilance”. Even though we quickly realized that we weren’t in any real danger, it took quite a while for my body to get the message and calm down.
Before I even had a name for it, that was my first clear example of what exposure to life-threatening trauma can do to our perceptions of safety and how it rewires our brain to respond instantly to perceived threat. As my professional training later would confirm, my friend’s combat experience had left him with all the symptoms of complex PTSD, and that morning gave me a glimpse of what he was dealing with every day since returning home.
In the 50 years since that morning we’ve learned a lot about the effects of trauma on our growth and development, as well as the range of different types of trauma that can distort our perceptions and complicate our lives. PTSD has become a widely recognized term, and studies have shown the effects of trauma to be closely connected to a wide range of physical illnesses, behavioral and emotional problems. I’ve spent over 30 years helping people understand how trauma in their lives has affected their perceptions and responses, and help them master techniques for reducing the negative impact on their lives.
Are you holding four ACEs—or more?
Is your ACE score below 4?
Knowing your ACE score may be as important to your health as your blood pressure or A1C!
In Vegas, holding four aces would raise eyebrows around a poker table—maybe even pay for your trip! But the ACEs that really impact our lives are of a different kind—our experience of Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs). Thousands of studies building on the pioneering work of Dr. Vincent Felitti and his colleagues have confirmed a strikingly strong relationship between early exposure to trauma and a growing number of medical and mental health problems.
Compared to those who had experienced none of the adverse childhood experiences studied, in the original study those who had experienced four or more ACEs had dramatically greater risks of a wide range of physical and emotional problems, including:.
4- to 12-fold increased health risks for alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, and suicide attempt
2- to 4-fold increase in smoking, poor self-rated health,
1.4- to 1.6-fold increase in physical inactivity and severe obesity.
Risk of the following adult diseases also increased with higher ACE scores:
ischemic heart disease,
cancer,
chronic lung disease,
skeletal fractures, and
liver disease.
How can I tell if I’m dealing with PTSD?
Therapy for trauma can help you…
Not everyone will experience the same symptoms in response to traumatic events, but if you’ve gone through situations in which you felt you might not survive—either physically or emotionally, you may recognize some of the following reactions.
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Recurrent distressing memories of the traumatic event.
Flashbacks: Reliving the traumatic incident as if it were happening again.
Nightmares related to the trauma.
Severe emotional distress or physical reactions triggered by reminders of the event.
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Avoiding thinking or talking about the traumatic experience.
Avoiding places, activities, or people associated with the trauma.
Unusually Negative Changes in Thinking and Mood:
Negative thoughts about oneself, others, or the world.
Hopelessness about the future.
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Feeling detached from family and friends.
Lack of interest in activities once enjoyed.
Difficulty experiencing positive emotions.
Overwhelming feelings of guilt.
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Easily startled or frightened.
Hyper-vigilance: Always being on guard for danger.
Self-destructive behavior, such as excessive drinking or reckless driving.
Trouble sleeping.
Difficulty concentrating.
Irritability, angry outbursts, or aggressive behavior.
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Adding to the complexity of identifying and understanding reactions to trauma is the fact that these symptoms can be delayed—sometimes for years after the original trauma—and may emerge gradually over time with no obvious connection to current events. Clients often confess that they worry “I’m losing my mind” because the feelings, thoughts, and behavioral changes seem so out of character for them.
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Initially traumatic memories may emerge in distorted, disjointed fragments lacking any context that would connect them to anything you remember. Interpretations of these so-called “repressed memories” need to be handled “with kid gloves”. My own clinical experience, backed up by careful research has demonstrated that these fragmented memories can be very misleading and are susceptible to distortions that can be damaging to you and those you care about when interpretations are reached prematurely. Unless you’re familiar with the effects of trauma, it can be maddeningly difficult to make sense of what’s happening to you. But an experienced trauma therapist can guide you through the process and help you make sense of those experiences.
Achieve a clear understanding of how your trauma history has affected you, and no longer fear that some mysterious illness is causing you to “lose it".
Improve your sleep and energy levels so that you wake up looking forward to the day.
Re-engage with family and friends you care about so you are emotionally available as well as physically present in their lives.
Feel confident that you have the calming and de-escalation skills you need to handle flashbacks and panic attacks without losing days or weeks at a time.
Frequently asked questions about trauma therapy
FAQs [In progress . . . ]
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