Adult Counseling

Adult Counseling Specialty Areas:

• Life change issues
• Relationship struggles
• Stress & Trauma
• Adult attachment issues
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Counseling
• Christian counseling
• Family Therapy
  

Treatment Focus:

Because we are shaped through the basic experiences and attitudes that are held both consciously and unconsciously, treatment will focus on the verbal, emotional, physical, social and spiritual aspects of the self to promote the healing process. The foundation of treatment is in the Christian faith.

The Effects of Stress and Trauma:

Stress and trauma are facts of life. When we are faced with a physical and/or psychological danger, the brain goes into survival mode. It activates our nervous system to prepare for flight or fight. This results in an immediate activation of our body’s systems to work together and aid our survival response. When life experiences or traumatic history, compromises our ability to self- regulate the brain may perceive threats that are not currently happening, or it may not signal the body that the threat is over. The nervous system then becomes over-activated and incapable of calming down. This can lead to physical symptoms such as headache, stomach ache, allergies, back pain, or emotional symptoms such as anxiety, panic, hyper vigilance, depression, or fatigue.

Developmental Trauma:

Trauma can also be developmental, for example when a traumatic event such as abuse, abandonment or neglect interrupts the normal developmental stages of a child.
Individuals, who were traumatized by ongoing abuse as children, especially if the abuse was in the family, may suffer from “developmental trauma.” Developmental trauma refers primarily to the psychologically based issues that are usually a result of inadequate nurturing and guidance through critical developmental periods during childhood.

Attachment Disruption:

Developmental trauma may lead to an attachment disruption. Dynamics between early childhood “family of origin” attachment patterns will be explored and as they often affect current adult relationships. We will use corrective experiences to aid in resolving fixed attachment patterns and facilitate “earned attachment” which means a return to healthy secure attachment that occurs as you repair and heal early bonding wounds. Healing past trauma allows us to enjoy healthy intimacy in our current relationships.