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Lune Hadfield
Chartered Counselling Psychologist
Trauma & PTSD
I can help with different types of trauma including acute stress disorder, chronic trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD.
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Trauma and symptoms of PTSD follow a distressing, frightening or dangerous event. Traumatic events tend to be sudden and unpredictable, involve a serious threat to life, and feel beyond a person's control. However, trauma is subjective and any experience that threatens a person's sense of safety, security and survival can result in trauma.
While trauma is a normal response to a disturbing event, it becomes PTSD when a person's nervous system gets 'stuck' on the stress and danger response and they remain in a state of high alert and fear, unable to make sense of what happened or process their experience.
Since each individual experiences trauma and PTSD differently, symptoms vary from person to person. Symptoms also vary depending on the type of trauma, but some common symptoms include:​
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feeling anxious, afraid or panicky
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flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, images or memories
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nightmares
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feeling emotionally numb and detached from others
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loss of interest in activities, social gatherings or life in general
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feeling guilty or ashamed
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sleep disruptions or insomnia
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physical symptoms such as sweating, nausea, shaking or pain
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avoiding things that are reminders of the trauma
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feeling irritable or angry and lashing out
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loss of self-confidence or self-esteem
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constantly on guard and on the lookout for threat and danger
These symptoms can appear within days, weeks, months or even years following a traumatic event.
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Therapy for Trauma & PTSD
There are many different ways to treat trauma and PTSD. The right one for you will depend on your type of trauma, the severity of symptoms, and your preferences. All treatment is tailored to your unique presentation and requirements in order to produce sustainable, positive outcomes.
Therapy for trauma and PTSD seeks to help you process your traumatic memories and related feelings, reduce distressing symptoms, and develop coping strategies and skills to mange your triggers and the aftermath of trauma.
By fostering resilience and restoring a sense of safety and control, trauma and PTSD therapy aims to empower you to reclaim your life, and move forward with renewed hope, meaning and purpose.
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