3 Types of Trauma and Therapy Treatments

Trauma can cause various emotional and psychological issues that require professional treatments, such as therapy and medication. Therapy for trauma allows you to adjust to a traumatic event, like an accident, assault, or natural disaster. Here are three types of trauma and therapy treatments:

Types of Trauma

Before your healthcare provider recommends therapy for trauma, they diagnose the type of distress and adverse psychological and emotional impacts. Trauma can be acute, chronic, or complex. Here is more information about each: 

1. Acute trauma: This stems from accidents, natural disasters, assaults, the loss of a loved one or a job, and other distressing events. Symptoms range from shock and denial to anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and stress.
2. Chronic trauma: This comes from prolonged or repeated exposure to child abuse, domestic violence, abuse, bullying, and other stressful events. Symptoms include separation, hypervigilance, difficulty forming meaningful relationships, and emotional numbness.
3. Complex trauma: This trauma stems from multiple ongoing stressful or traumatic events. Neglect and abuse are some causes of complex trauma and can lead to trust and esteem issues and irritation.

You may also suffer secondary, developmental, or medical trauma. Secondary or vicarious trauma comes from dealing with trauma survivors and affects healthcare workers and therapists. Symptoms include emotional exhaustion and cynicism. Developmental trauma comes from early childhood experiences, like neglect, abuse, and exposure to violence or drugs. Medical trauma stems from distressing surgeries, procedures, or chronic illnesses. Symptoms include emotional dysregulation, anxiety, post-traumatic distress disorder, and more.

Therapy Treatments for Trauma

Therapists offer various treatments for trauma, from dialectical behavior therapy to mindfulness, music, and sand play. Dialectical behavior therapy combines mindfulness and emotional regulation strategies. The treatment is used when trauma causes difficulty regulating your emotions. Cognitive behavioral therapy identifies and changes the negative thought patterns that cause anxiety and intrusive thoughts. Therapists also provide eye movement desensitization and reprocessing to help individuals process and reframe traumatic memories if they’ve been diagnosed with PTSD. Trauma-focused therapy uses cognitive restructuring and relaxation techniques to help children and adolescents recover from life-changing events.

Therapists can also gradually expose you to trauma-related triggers in safe settings to reduce phobias and fears created by PTSD. Other treatments for trauma include somatic experiences and psychodynamic therapy. The therapy chosen depends on the type of trauma you suffer from. Some therapies involve groups and supportive communities of individuals with shared experiences, while others use prescription medication. Your therapist can prescribe antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications to complement psychotherapy and other techniques.

Additional Support for Trauma

Therapists may recommend additional support through music or art therapy, expressive play, sand play, or supplementary auxiliary mental therapies. Music therapy involves listening, singing, or playing music to address emotional, cognitive, and physical needs. Engaging with music and art helps reduce stress and improve mental health while allowing individuals to express themselves nonverbally. Expressive play therapy, which involves toys, art, and storytelling, is usually used to help children recover from trauma. The therapy focuses on expressing emotions, processing experiences, and resolving conflicts.

Sand play therapy involves using miniature figures to create sandbox scenes and explore emotions with symbols. Auxiliary mental therapies combine art, drama, movement, and other activities to enhance emotional well-being. Therapists also provide mindfulness-focused stress reduction to enhance relaxation and family or couple therapy for collective healing strategies.

Get Therapy for Trauma Today

Trauma can happen to anyone at any time and may require professional treatment to prevent or address potential psychological, emotional, and physical issues. You can work with a therapist to recover from a debilitating accident, adjust to a divorce or assault, or get through a life-changing event. Speak to a therapist today to find out more about therapy for trauma.