How do I tell my therapist about trauma?

How do I tell my therapist about trauma?

You can say something like: “There is something I’m struggling to move past. I know I need to face it to move forward, but I’m afraid to talk about it. I think I’m afraid I will be judged, or that you will think I’m overreacting.” If you don’t know what to talk about in therapy, some things to consider talking about include recent life events, relationships, traumas, and more. You can say something like: “There is something I’m struggling to move past. I know I need to face it to move forward, but I’m afraid to talk about it. I think I’m afraid I will be judged, or that you will think I’m overreacting.”

How do I tell my therapist about trauma?

You can say something like: “There is something I’m struggling to move past. I know I need to face it to move forward, but I’m afraid to talk about it. I think I’m afraid I will be judged, or that you will think I’m overreacting.”

What should a therapist do as a client is telling their trauma story?

Your client’s first retelling of their trauma story should focus on the facts of what happened. Encourage them to share the who, what, when, and where of their traumatic experience. Thoughts and feelings will come in later. Trauma narratives are most effective when they’re written. Communicating about distressing emotions and experiences with supportive and attuned therapists and others helps clients organize memories in a meaningful way, make sense of their past, and create a logical story. Let them know that you are sorry to hear that they went through something traumatic and that you want them to get the appropriate help to heal from it. Normalize and validate the response. Compassionately state that crying is a normal reaction. Let the client know explicitly that it’s okay to cry; there’s no need to hold back the tears. If offering a tissue box, it’s often useful to say, “Please don’t try to hold those tears back.

Should I tell someone about my trauma?

Many people benefit from talking about past trauma, and several cultures and professions encourage such sharing. Some people choose not to discuss trauma. Instead, they focus on other people’s issues or more pleasant topics, keeping traumas hidden. Putting words to a traumatic story is therapeutic in and of itself. It helps a person to remember details, express emotions, choose what is important to say, and make sense of all that has happened to them and in them. Storytelling helps a person begin to write conclusions to the story, which leads to resolution. Smiling when discussing trauma is a way to minimize the traumatic experience. It communicates the notion that what happened “wasn’t so bad.” This is a common strategy that trauma survivors use in an attempt to maintain a connection to caretakers who were their perpetrators. Past Crimes In most cases, discussing a past crime is protected by confidentiality rules. This means that you should be able to discuss a crime you committed with your therapist, and your therapist is sworn to secrecy.

What to say when someone tells you about their past trauma?

Focus on non-judgmental, compassionate responses which help reduce shame. You might say “I’m so sorry you had to experience that,” or “you didn’t deserve that, and you deserve support now,” or “I want you to know you’re not alone,” or “you did what you have to do to survive.” Focus on expressing empathy, concern, and compassion. Don’t ask for specific or excessive details. It’s natural to want to know more and understand the “whys” of a traumatic event. Sometimes asking “why do you think this happened?” can be construed as victim-blaming or doubting their experience. The reasons for this are multi-fold and likely include shame, perceived stigma of being a “victim,” past negative disclosure experiences and fears of being blamed or told that the event was somehow their fault.