If you’re exhausted, drained, tired of it all, outraged, or numb, it’s understandable. Give yourself space and time to breathe and grieve. Rest and restore. – Thema Bryant-Davis, PhD Just over a year ago, our lives changed forever. When COVID hit and we were forced into lockdown, most of us were longing for the day […]
Challenging the Fear of Abandonment, with Pat Ogden, PhD
When a client fears abandonment, they may desperately reach out for emotional connection in their relationships . . . . . . only to feel pain and heartbreak when their behavior overwhelms the other person and drives them away. And this can especially be the case when it comes to romantic relationships. Over time, this […]
[Infographic] How Trauma Can Affect Adult Relationships
Left untreated, childhood trauma can reverberate through adult relationships and make it difficult for your client to get close to other people. But Terry Real, MSW, LICSW has a way of thinking about the psyche that can help clients understand the aftereffects of trauma . . . . . . and help practitioners retarget their […]
[Infographic] How to Differentiate Between the Freeze and Shutdown Trauma Responses
The freeze and shutdown responses to trauma can resemble each other . . . . . . but they are very different in terms of what’s happening in your client’s brain, body, and nervous system. And that means they require different grounding strategies as well. In this infographic, we lay out some key cues to […]
A Mistake Practitioners Might Make When Their Patient Is Stuck in the “Attach/Cry-for-Help” Response
We know fight, flight, and freeze . . . . . . but recently the experts have identified several more defense responses to trauma, including “attach/cry-for-help.” This response is potentially the least understood, and it can be challenging to work with. And according to Kathy Steele, MN, CS, there’s a common mistake that practitioners make […]