Finding a Path to Peace, Safety & Purpose After Life’s Challenging Moments
It would be a relief to believe that most people never experience traumatic events or abuse, but the unfortunate fact of the matter is that almost everyone will experience some form of trauma or abuse in their lifetime. While you can’t always avoid negative experiences, you can choose to take care of yourself and work with a professional to heal. At Compass Family Counseling, we offer therapy for survivors of trauma and abuse in our Littler Rock practice. You can learn more about these services on this page or by contacting one of our experienced clinicians. We’re here to help.
The Impact of Trauma & Abuse
When bad things happen, it can take a while to get over the trauma and feel safe again. Whether the distressing occasion took place years ago or just the other day, it can stick with you and continue to impact your daily life. The myriad effects of trauma and abuse can present themselves mentally, emotionally, or physically. You may think you’re able to keep the impact of past trauma to yourself, but the odds are your behaviors have impacted your friends and loved ones or your ability to maintain healthy, functional relationships. Even if you think you’re “over” a traumatic or abusive experience or that it hasn’t impacted you, really consider whether you’re struggling with any of the common emotional, cognitive, and physical symptoms of unprocessed trauma:
- Denying the situation was traumatic
- Justifying or rationalizing abusive behaviors to avoid processing their effects
- Blaming yourself for the traumatic event or abuse
- Feeling confused or having difficulty concentrating, especially when “triggered” to think about the traumatic event or abusive behavior
- Feelings that are incongruous with the situation like elevated levels of fear, anger, or sadness
- Choosing to feel numb by ignoring or repressing painful emotional responses or using alcohol and other substances or behaviors to “numb out” rather than experience painful emotions
- Withdrawing from loved ones intentionally or feeling increasingly isolated even when you’re with friends and family members
- Sleeping too much or too little
- Having nightmares while asleep or flashbacks of the traumatic event or abuse while awake
- Eating too much or too little
- Startling easily
- Experiencing body aches, muscle tension, headaches, elevated heart rate, sweating, shaking, and other physical responses to fear or stress when triggered
- Lashing out at others when triggered
How Therapy Helps Individuals Navigating Traumatic & Abusive Situations
Unfortunately, many people hold onto a false belief that they should be able to deal with the effects of trauma and abuse on their own, but research shows that experiencing trauma leaves psychological wounds. It can be a beneficial exercise to compare the psychological wounds left by trauma and abuse to a physical bruise. Your body may respond to physical injuries by bruising, which is your body’s way of healing itself, but everyone bruises differently. Maybe you’ve heard someone say that they, “Bruise like a peach,” to describe how readily their skin discolors when injured. Others are much less likely to develop a bruise even when they experience a greater physical impact. You wouldn’t say that the person whose skin bruises easily is weak and the person whose skin is less bruised is strong. This is just their body’s innate, healing response. The injuries caused by trauma, like bruises, are different for everyone. Even if two people have very similar experiences, their brains and bodies will respond differently. The important thing is that you recognize the way you’re naturally responding to trauma and abuse, so you can take steps to recover, heal, and move forward. Therapy can help you through this process.
What to Expect During Therapy for Trauma & Abuse
Your therapy sessions to address trauma and abuse will be built around your specific situation. During your early appointments, we’ll discuss the traumatic or abusive situation that’s impacting you. Then, we’ll partner with you to create a plan to understand and process the effects of trauma and abuse in healthy and healing ways. As you work with a therapist, your needs may change. Continuing our bruise metaphor, some survivors of trauma or abuse find that therapy can feel like poking a bruise. Our goal is always to help you heal and make progress, not to cause you more pain, so if your therapy sessions are causing a lot of discomfort or you’re feeling overwhelmed, don’t hesitate to let your counselor know. We’re always ready to adjust our approach to best fit your immediate needs and ensure you feel safe and comfortable working with us.
Who Offers Therapy for Trauma & Abuse
Our skilled clinicians have the knowledge and skill to partner with clients to achieve their therapy goals. Learn more about our counselors who offer counseling for individuals who have experienced trauma or abuse by clicking the links below:
- Get to Know Dan
- Get to Know Betsy
- Get to Know Janelle
- Get to Know Shannan
- Get to Know Sarah
- Get to Know Marty
Get Started
We made setting up a therapy session with one of our skilled and qualified therapists as easy as possible, offering you three simple contact options:
#1 Call us at 501-291-3732
#2 Click here to fill out and submit our 'Contact Us' form
#3 Email us at [email protected]
When you call, one of our team members will discuss your appointment request and gather any necessary information to direct you to the best counselor to address your individual needs and schedule a consultation call. If you email us or submit a contact request form, we will call you within 24-hours to setup a consultation with a therapist who will be ready to serve you. Either way, we’re happy to chat with you to answer questions and help you schedule your therapy sessions.