Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Our Trauma Care Centre is here to help.
Trauma isn’t like other injuries many of us experience. It can often be difficult to define and see - but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect us in deep and personal ways. The Trauma Care Centre by Edgar Psychological specializes in helping people understand how trauma might be impacting their life and learning to control and regulate uncontrollable feelings around traumatic experiences. Our Trauma Care Centre team can help you be more compassionate and supportive of yourself - and define what a life worth living looks like. Trauma doesn’t have to be a life sentence.
Types of trauma
Developmental Trauma- childhood trauma such as chronic abuse, neglect or other harsh adversity in their own homes
Shock Trauma– a shock reaction to a specific event
Relational Trauma– experience of threat from someone on a position of trust or power
Sustained Community Based Trauma– repeated traumatic events within a community like civil war, multiple suicides, or cultural or faith-based conflicts
Intergenerational/Historic Trauma– “the cumulative emotional and psychological wounding across generations, including the lifespan, which emanates from a massive group trauma.” (Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart, 2011)
Secondary Trauma– current personal or family experiences may replicate parts of past trauma
Vicarious Trauma– hearing and seeing other’s experiences of trauma
Key facts
Women are at higher risk of developing PTSD than men especially in relation to sexual trauma
PTSD symptoms may take years to develop
Talk therapy is considered more effective than medication in treating PTSD symptoms
Children can develop PTSD
Treating PTSD
When PTSD is identified and treated appropriately people can begin enjoying their lives again. Prolonged Exposure therapy (PE), Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR), and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) are effective in addressing the symptoms of PTSD.
Ketamine-assisted Psychotherapy (KaP) is a novel treatment option that offers high efficacy in symptom reduction and increased well-being for those with PTSD. Studies also show benefits of racemic ketamine treatment for those who have experienced trauma, but who do not necessarily have post-traumatic stress.
Medication can sometimes be used in conjunction with talk therapy to treat PTSD.
Next steps
Our psychologists are here to help. To learn more about PTSD or to book a free phone consultation, please call us at 780-860-7338 or fill out our contact form.
We also offer group therapy via our Emotion Regulation Skills Group for PTSD.
The following psychologists are able to treat PTSD:
References
Crisis and Trauma Resource Institute. (2016). Trauma – Strategies for resolving the impact of post-traumatic stress. Winnipeg: Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute.
PTSD Journal. (2018). 10 Surprising Facts About PTSD. Retrieved from PTSD Journal: http://www.ptsdjournal.com/posts/10-surprising-facts-about-ptsd/
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (2017). Treatment of PTSD. Retrieved from PTSD: National Center for PTSD: https://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/treatment/therapy-med/treatment-ptsd.asp