Trauma Therapy

Trauma Therapy at Sentier

Traumatic events often have a prolonged effect on a person’s mental health and physical wellbeing. Eye movement and somatic or body-based therapies can be used to supplement traditional talk therapy. Some clients benefit from focused trauma treatment to target the difficult memories that may be negatively impacting their daily life. These therapies are sometimes brief and can be more effective than traditional talk therapy for addressing trauma. The goal is to help clients process the memory and heal their feelings and beliefs related to their traumatic experiences, resulting in fewer symptoms and improving functioning.

At Sentier, many therapists are trained in specific modalities of trauma treatment. Targeted trauma treatment is available for clients who already have a primary talk therapist or counselor, at Sentier or elsewhere. If a client desires to establish ongoing therapy with the Sentier therapist following trauma treatment, that may be an option based on therapist caseload/availability and client needs.

EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing

EMDR focuses on the present emotions, sensations, and thoughts about yourself that may be overly influenced by past emotional experiences. EMDR uses rapid eye movements, much like REM sleep, to help process and update past memories. With repeated sets of these eye movements, the intensity of these painful memories can decrease and become more neutral. This then allows the brain to resume its natural healing process and people are able to work through present and future stressors more effectively. EMDR also reduces the physical sensations that often go along with these intense memories. EMDR can be short or long term depending on the trauma history and other factors that are highly individualized.

Sentier’s EMDR Therapists: Andrea, Becky, Megan, Tana

Read more about EMDR, here.

ART: Accelerated Resolution Therapy

ART also involves rapid eye movements and utilizes therapist hand waving and scripts to process trauma. Trauma is stored in the long-term memory, and ART bypasses the working memory to access the trauma stored in a person’s long-term memory. Bypassing the working memory makes it easier for the client to process and work with their memories in a less taxing way.

Sentier’s ART Therapists: Ashley, Becky, Tana

Read more about ART, here.

Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) and Eye Movement (EMDR) utilize eye movements and bilateral stimulation to help clients process and heal from traumatic events in their life. Trauma is stored in the long-term memory, and ART and EMDR bypass the working memory to access this trauma. Through this process of bypassing the working memory, clients are able to process difficult memories and events that may be negatively impacting their daily life. ART and EMDR help clients to change their feelings and beliefs related to their traumatic experiences, resulting in fewer negative trauma-related symptoms.

Brainspotting

Brainspotting is a technique that is also used in addition to traditional talk therapy as a way to access unprocessed trauma in the subcortical brain. Brainspotting accesses “brainspots” by using fixed eye positions. A basic belief in this process is that where you look affects how you feel. Understanding this can ultimately help free up emotional processes.

Sentier’s Brainspotting Therapists: Sarah, Mary

Read more about Brainspotting, here.

Targeted Trauma Treatment at Sentier

What This Is:
  • Trauma treatment for clients who already have a primary therapist and known trauma memories they want to target
  • Can be a short-term treatment plan and number of sessions (depending on client history). Length of treatment is based on an initial brief diagnostic assessment to determine client needs
What This Is Not:
  • Talk therapy/counseling (clients can inquire about doing trauma treatment and talk therapy with therapist)
Trauma treatment is available for adolescent and adult clients. To inquire about trauma treatment at Sentier, please contact our Client Care Coordinator at [email protected] or 763-913-8261.

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