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Mental Health & Counselling Blog
Trauma, Healing, and Growth
Welcome to my little corner of the internet where I share what I know (and what I keep learning) about trauma, healing, and therapy. You’ll find posts about EMDR, trauma recovery, and what it really means to move through hard stuff with compassion and curiosity. Whether you’re here in Edmonton, or connecting with me virtually from BC, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, or the North, I hope these posts give you something to think about, something that helps you feel seen, or maybe just a reminder that you’re not alone in this. If you read something here that resonates and want to go a little deeper, you can always reach out. I offer in-person counselling in Edmonton, and virtual therapy across BC (Kelowna), Manitoba (Brandon), Saskatchewan, and the North. And yes, we can start with a free consultation.
Is It Really P.T.S.D.?
Let’s talk about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
I have been asked if someone “really had PTSD”, Let’s unpack this.
Confusion can surface when discussing PTSD as many individuals believe it only presents in those who have gone to war. This may result in labelling those with a PTSD diagnosis as “a liar” or a “fake”. In reality, “individual trauma results from an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual being” (SAMHSA, 2014, p. 7). This is an all-encompassing definition that can include other common types of trauma, such as: