Top 5 Truths About Trauma Therapy in St. Louis

Have you ever wondered if trauma therapy in St. Louis is something your child or teen needs? But, you’re not sure about all of the facts and want more information on the truth(s) of trauma therapy. The web can hold a lot of information, sometimes contradicting or maybe just a little confusing. We know how important it is to have the facts before jumping into something.

Trauma can change our body’s functioning. How we react, feel, or behave can be manipulated by experiencing trauma. Your child or teen may not be functioning well. Or maybe they’re easily triggered, by unforeseeable events that are seemingly small. It can make you feel like you don’t even know your child or teen anymore. If you’re feeling this way, it’s likely your child or teen is feeling this way too.

Trauma therapy in St. Louis can help restore ideal functioning. It is grounding and helps your child or teen reconnect and recover after a traumatic event.

Trauma affects the way we interact with the world. Coping skills built in trauma therapy can help realign your child or teens functioning so that they can live life less effected by the trauma or in less fear.

Trauma therapy gives your child or teen the space to acknowledge their feelings surrounding the trauma.

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Anger, sadness, guilt, loss, shame, fear, anxiety, panic - all of these feelings are common, and valid, after experiencing trauma.

It can be hard to understand and even express the feelings that come after going through trauma. The great thing about trauma therapy in St. Louis is that the space is completely for the client.

It’s unique in that the therapeutic relationship is a relationship focused on one person, your child or teen. This gives the ability for your child or teen to open up and express all that they have been holding in. It’s a non-judgmental space, where your child or teen can share everything they’ve experienced without fearing hurting or inflicting someone else with their pain. This is crucial for just acknowledging the traumatic experience.

Trauma therapy also helps build understanding about the traumatic experience.

While, no, trauma therapy can never take away the traumatic event, it can reshape the way the trauma is viewed.

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After experiencing trauma, our responses can be full of anger, fear, or despair, and sometimes we don’t even know why. Trauma therapy allows the space your child or teen to re-explore and re-examine the memory in a helpful, guided way to build understanding. The more understanding is built, the more your child and teen can work with the trauma therapist to implement interventions and reduce the accumulated stress from the traumatic event.

Trauma presents itself in different types, and can be caused by “classic,” easily recognizable trauma like physical abuse or sexual abuse, but it we also recognize that trauma can be due to grief and loss, emotional abuse, community violence, natural disasters, illness and medical trauma, and other big life changes.

The three defined types of trauma are acute, chronic, and complex.

• Acute trauma is trauma from a single stressful event (example: a car accident)

• Chronic trauma is repeated and prolonged exposure to traumatic events (example: child abuse, domestic abuse, bullying)

• Complex trauma is trauma from exposure to multiple traumatic events repeatedly and cumulatively (example: someone who lives in a community with violence, being exposed to domestic violence, and experiencing physical and emotional abuse).

Regardless of the trauma type and identifier, trauma-informed therapists are prepared to help you, along with your child and teen, heal from it.

Trauma therapy addresses common trauma symptoms which are anxiety, numbness/dissociation, changes in sleep, anger, emotional overwhelm, irritability, or fatigue.

It can be hard recognizing if what is going on with your child is trauma or if it’s something else. After trauma, our body can be put into overdrive in a constant state of fight or flight, which comes with changes in behavior and feelings.

If your child or teen has experienced one of the types of trauma above and is showing signs of anxiety, numbness, difficulty sleeping, anger, emotional overwhelm, irritability, or fatigue they’re probably dealing with the aftermath of the trauma. Trauma therapists have a specific expertise for working with trauma symptoms and responses, which they will address and work to relieve in therapy.

Now that you know the truths about trauma therapy in St. Louis and you feel ready to schedule with a trauma therapist, you can schedule a consultation with us to learn more and find the therapist that will best fit your child or teen! Don’t worry, we will briefly get an overview of what’s going on and take care of all of the details over the phone so that your child or teen can be booked efficiently with a trauma therapist. Or, if we aren’t the best fit, we’re happy to give you referrals to a therapist who might be more suitable.

We’re happy to help.

Curious to hear more about trauma therapy in St. Louis? Compassionate Counseling St. Louis provides specialized anxiety and anger management therapy for kids, teens, and college students. We work in Clayton, MO and serve kids, teens, and college students throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ladue, University City, Town and Country, Webster Groves, Creve Coeur, Kirkwood, Richmond Heights, and Brentwood. You can set up your free phone screening to see if we’re a good fit for your needs right on our website.