Therapy for Trauma in Burlington

You are so much more than what has happened to you.

Does this sound like you?

  • Relationships feel hard, where you’re either struggling to open up and be vulnerable, or you feel overwhelming anxiety about whether people will stick around

  • You’re starting to notice that your childhood experiences were not ideal and in a lot of ways, hurtful

  • You notice you’re constantly on guard and ready to respond to danger, even when you’re in safe places

  • You experience flashbacks of past experiences that feel overwhelming to cope with

  • You feel overwhelming anxiety about what others think of you, how they’re going to respond to you and worry about upsetting them

Our past often bleeds into our present.

People have shared with me that this concept can be frustrating, upsetting and even annoying and honestly, I get it. It’s frustrating, upsetting and even annoying to learn that things that have happened to us have such an overwhelming ability to dictate how we show up in the world.

What is Trauma, Anyways?

Trauma is defined by any past experience that was stressful or frightening and overwhelmed our capacity to cope. As a result, these experiences often impact the way we see ourselves, other people and the world. Traumatic experiences also disrupt one’s natural coping process, and as a result can manifest in symptoms of anxiety, depression, low self worth, lack of motivation, nightmares or “flashbacks”, panic attacks, anger or irritability and emotional dysregulation.

Trauma is an all-encompassing term that defines a range of upsetting experiences that are stressful and overwhelming. Enso Counselling provides treatment for a range of traumatic experiences, including:

Trauma that results from a single, short-term event, such as an accident, natural disaster, medical procedure/complication, witnessing a significant event. The impact can be immediate and intense, but it often involves a specific, identifiable incident.

Trauma and upsetting experiences that occurred throughout childhood within the context of one’s family. Experiences may include parental divorce, parental abandonment, childhood abuse of any kind, parents with poor boundaries or controlling behaviours, parents with mental health or addictions challenges, physically or emotionally unavailable parents.

Ongoing events within a close relationship including abuse of any kind, controlling behaviour, bullying, discrimination or oppression.

Trauma that occurs as a result of being regularly exposed to the trauma of others. Secondary/vicarious trauma is often experienced by individuals who work in helping professions including therapists, first responders, medical professionals, social workers or anyone who regularly hears about or witnesses the suffering of others.

How Can Trauma Therapy Help?

Trauma Therapy can help you:

  • Feel more connected to your authentic self, your needs and your values

  • Improve your ability to regulate and understand your emotions

  • Reduce the emotional charge related to traumatic memories and experiences

  • Develop a deeper understanding of yourself and how trauma has impacted how you see yourself, other people and the world at large

  • Improve feelings of self worth and self esteem

  • Establish and maintain safe, vulnerable and reciprocal relationships

Trauma therapy is a specialized form of psychotherapy that focuses on helping you process past trauma to overcome the various impacts it has had on you.

Therapy looks different for each person and is tailored to how trauma has uniquely impacted you. For many, trauma therapy involves understanding and exploring how trauma has affected you, developing coping strategies to regulate emotions and triggers, addressing potential self-worth challenges and reducing the emotional impact that your trauma has had on you. Tailoring therapy to your unique needs, circumstances and experiences means that you’ll get an individualized approach that focuses on your goals, and what you need to achieve them.

Various techniques are utilized throughout trauma therapy, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT) and inner child work.

Let’s get started