Therapists are always learning. We are required to obtain ongoing education in order to maintain our licenses, but many of us learn because we love it. And I am one of them. So I recently completed a two-day intensive trauma treatment certification workshop. This trauma training was led by Dr. Arielle Schwartz, one of the foremost experts in the field of trauma treatment today.
Why did I complete this training? As someone who has been providing mental health treatment for two decades, don’t I know what I’m doing with clients who have trauma? Wouldn’t I call myself a trauma-informed therapist?
Well, yes. And, of the most important aspects of being an ethical licensed clinician is knowing your limits. I have a really wide range of experience, and have met with literally thousands of people over the course of two decades. I’ve definitely helped A LOT of people with trauma-related symptoms. And I’ve certainly had trauma trainings before. But as I dive deeper into helping folks with the negative impact of religious harm, it was important to me to gain a greater understanding about how trauma works in the brain and body, and to learn about the latest research and treatment approaches.
Many people think about trauma or PTSD as something that only results from wartime combat or extremely dangerous or violent situations. On the other end of the spectrum, the word trauma gets thrown around a lot these days, especially on pop psychology social media. I have heard/read terms like “diet trauma,” “breakup trauma,” and so on. And I’m not here to say that those things can’t exist. But I also believe we need to be very careful with the term. Not everything difficult or upsetting in life is a “trauma.”
Because of my respect for those who live with PTSD or C-PTSD, or have experienced all kinds of trauma and abuse including religious trauma and emotional abuse (as well as the clinicians who have spent lots of time and money training to treat these issues) I want to make sure that my treatment is not only trauma-informed but that I can use that term ethically and with confidence.
What does it mean to practice trauma-informed therapy? It can include a variety of features, but here are a few:
- Using a collaborative approach with the client
- Keeping the client’s social context in mind (racial, ethnic, economic, etc.)
- Empowering the client to have choices in therapy
- Prioritizing feelings of safety and trust in the therapy relationship
So, I’m happy I completed this recent training. I learned a lot, and I know I have only scratched the surface on a lot of topics. I have been practicing so many of these principles for ages, so it was good to know my approach is already pretty trauma-friendly.
Are you wondering if you have religious trauma syndrome, an anxiety disorder, or something else entirely? Let’s talk.