Trauma

Everyone has a different response after experiencing trauma. Some get over the lingering fear and anxiety in a few weeks; others struggle to cope and develop long-lasting symptoms that affect their daily life. Dawn Goldstein, PhD, RN, PMHNP-BC, and the team at Huron Street Wellness Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan, offer trauma-informed care, creating treatment plans that help you overcome the trauma and restore your quality of life. Call the office today, book an in-person or telehealth appointment online, or connect using their online form and chat feature.

What is trauma?

In the mental health field, trauma refers to experiencing a dangerous or life-threatening event that causes emotional and mental distress. The most common causes of psychological trauma include:

• Sexual assault
• Physical abuse
• Emotional abuse
• Childhood neglect
• Military duty
• Gun violence
• Domestic violence
• Car crashes and other accidents
• Robbery or household invasion
• Natural disasters (such as hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes)

Your trauma may arise from a one-time experience or develop over weeks, months, or years of ongoing verbal or emotional abuse.

What symptoms does trauma cause?

Virtually everyone experiences one or more of the following symptoms after a traumatic event:

• Moderate to severe anxiety
• Depression
• Stress
• Nightmares
• Flashbacks
• Insomnia
• Startling easily
• Social isolation
• Guilt or shame
• Anger, irritability, and aggression
• Sudden flare-ups of anger, rage, or fear
• Avoidance (purposefully staying away from things that remind you of the trauma)

Children experience the same symptoms as above. They may also worry about dying, regress to earlier behaviors like thumbsucking or separation anxiety, or act out the traumatic event when playing. 

Does trauma cause mental health disorders?

Trauma is associated with several mental health disorders. The two most common include acute distress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Both cause the same symptoms, but their timing is different.

Acute stress disorder develops within three days after the event and lasts one month. You have PTSD when your symptoms go on longer than a month.

How is trauma treated?

The Huron Street Wellness Center team completes a psychiatric diagnostic assessment, then creates a personalized care plan based on their experienced, trauma-informed, affirming lens.

Though each person’s treatment is customized to meet their needs, your provider draws from several modalities:

Medication management

Your provider may prescribe medications to relieve the core symptoms of PTSD. 

Psychotherapy

The Huron Street Wellness Center team is skilled in many trauma-focused therapies. A few examples include:

• Trauma-focused cognitive behavior therapy (TF-CBT)
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
• Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)
• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)

You and your provider decide which approach is the best fit for you.

Integrative therapies

Your provider may recommend integrative therapies, such as stress management, meditation, and therapeutic yoga.

Has trauma triggered a mental health crisis? Don’t wait to call 911. Go to the nearest hospital or connect with the national suicide and crisis hotline at 988.

To meet a compassionate provider and get care for overcoming trauma, call Huron Street Wellness Center or request an in-person or telehealth appointment online.