Everyone experiences traumatic events in their lives. The death of a grandparent or beloved pet, the loss of a job, or a breakup can all be traumatic.
Trauma-informed therapy takes the trauma you’ve experienced into consideration when looking at your current mental health concerns.
For example, did the loss of a parent at a young age leave you with an inability to trust that people won’t abandon you? Did that fear of abandonment then result in an intimacy disorder that manifests as sex addiction?
Trauma-informed therapists understand how trauma impacts the brain, keeping people trapped in a fight-or-flight mode. They also understand how attempts to cope with these feelings can quickly lead to addiction.
Here’s what you need to know about the relationship between trauma and sex addiction and how trauma-informed care can help.
What is Trauma?
Trauma is the emotional response to a single distressing event or a series of them.
Examples of happenings that may result in someone experiencing emotional trauma include an accident that results in injury, a negative health diagnosis, a sexual assault, or ongoing bullying.
Finding out that your partner has a sex addiction can also be a traumatic experience.
Responses to Trauma
While everyone experiences traumatic happenings, not everyone reacts to them the same way. Some people have fleeting feelings about the trauma, while others can’t seem to move past it. This can even happen with the same traumatic experience.
For example, two people can be in the same car accident, but only one develops emotional trauma as a result. That’s because people process trauma differently. One person may immediately think about how lucky they were not to be injured and move on to the next thing. Meanwhile, the other person in the accident may keep reliving it and everything bad that could have happened.
Risk Factors for Trauma
Some people also have pre-existing risk factors that might make them more prone to trauma than others. These factors can include things like previous experience with trauma or a lack of support from others.
Using the example above, the person who is experiencing emotional trauma may be having such a difficult time because they previously were injured in a car wreck and the recent wreck brings back that experience, too.
Symptoms of Emotional Trauma
Trauma symptoms also are variable, depending greatly on the person and their previous life experiences.
Some symptoms include:
- Changes in sleep patterns, such as sleeping too much or too little
- Reliving the traumatic happening
- A heightened startle response
- Lack of self-care
- Avoiding people, places, or events that trigger traumatic memories
- Confusion and impaired memories
- Difficulty building healthy relationships
- Extreme anxiety, panic attacks
- Engaging in risky behaviors
- Poor impulse control
- Shame and low self-esteem
Trauma symptoms are more than occasional behaviors. They are patterns of thinking and behaving that you can’t seem to escape. Attempting to cope with emotional trauma also can lead to addictive behaviors.
What is Trauma-Informed Therapy?
Trauma-informed therapy is when the therapist understands the far-reaching impact of trauma and uses that knowledge to understand a client’s behaviors.
A trauma-informed therapist approaches the client with a desire to understand what happened to them that resulted in their current state instead of looking at them as a flawed person. One of the goals is to avoid retraumatizing clients.
Certified Sex Addiction Therapists (CSATs) have specialized training to help clients overcome the effects of trauma that resulted in sex, pornography, or masturbation addiction. These therapists understand that trauma often is the root cause of addiction.
Most traditional talk therapy focuses on changing a person’s way of thinking. Trauma-informed therapy emphasizes skill building. This therapy teaches clients how to regulate their emotions without relying on compulsive sexual behaviors.
Therapists trained in a trauma-informed approach encourage clients to be involved in their care services. That is what “patient-centric” means. The individual’s needs and boundaries are a priority, not the therapist’s goals. This approach is a type of holistic healing, focusing on healing the client’s mind, body, and spirit.
5 Principles of Trauma-Informed Therapy
Trauma-informed care is more than an idea. It’s a specific approach to therapy. Many mental health professionals, including those at Begin Again Institute, practice these five key principles of trauma-informed care.
1. Safety
Trauma often shatters a person’s sense of safety, so re-establishing safety is paramount in this type of therapy.
Safety is both physical and emotional. Safe, secure therapy spaces where clients feel comfortable are a priority. Emotional and psychological safety are also critical. This may look like non-judgmental care from a credentialed therapist.
2. Trustworthiness
Clients can’t open up to people they don’t trust. And trust often doesn’t come easy to someone experiencing emotional trauma.
Consistent boundaries and setting clear expectations for treatment helps build trust between clients and therapists.
Clients should never feel surprised or tricked by what they’re asked to do or share in therapy. They should always understand what’s coming next.
3. Choice
Trauma often makes people feel out of control of their own lives. Trauma-informed care can empower people by allowing them to make choices about their treatment. They can decide what their treatment entails or even what to work on.
4. Collaboration
Trauma-informed care is a collaboration between a therapist and their client. There isn’t a strict protocol to follow. Instead, the mental health expert relies on their knowledge of what the person needs to guide them through practices that will work best for them. It looks different for everybody because everybody has different experiences.
5. Empowerment
A trauma-informed approach helps clients re-establish control. It empowers people to discover and build on existing strengths. They develop healthier coping skills and, ultimately, a more solid foundation that they can fall back on when needed in the future. Being trauma-informed promotes resilience and provides the hope that recovery is possible.
Benefits of Trauma-Informed Therapy
The greatest benefit of this type of therapy is that it works. A trauma-informed approach has been shown to increase the effectiveness of therapy for adults.
Some of the specific benefits include:
- Reframing traumatic experiences to make sense of them
- Understanding how your body and mind naturally respond to trauma
- Improving relationships
- Reducing irritability and anger
- Learning healthy coping strategies
- Increasing self-esteem and self-confidence
- Reducing or eliminating trauma triggers
People may want to avoid therapy because they worry about opening old wounds. But the wounds are already there and impacting your life.
Many people even hesitate to share past traumas with close friends or partners. There is a fear the other person will think less of them or not understand their trauma. This is understandable, but living with unprocessed trauma is a bigger risk.
Research has even found that an increase in symptoms during therapy can mean a bigger improvement in mental wellness.
Trauma-Informed Therapy Techniques
A trauma-informed approach to therapy includes various techniques aimed at identifying the root cause of a mental health concern or addiction and releasing or processing that painful experience.
The techniques used depend somewhat on the person and their unique needs.
Common therapy techniques include:
- Individual talk therapy
- Group therapy with others experiencing the same types of concerns
- Brainspotting
- Guided meditation
In addition to a trauma-informed approach applied to specific therapeutic modalities, Begin Again Institute uses the Trauma-Induced Sexual Addiction (TINSA) model for treating sex addictions. The model is based on the assumption that trauma is the result of being injured while being vulnerable or authentic.
To heal, you must identify the trauma and understand your automatic reaction to it. Then, you can make connections between the trauma and your responses. Once you understand these components, you can learn skills to stop the harmful behavior.
When seeking sex addiction treatment for sex addiction, people should look for a treatment center that is trauma-focused, since trauma is the root cause of most addictions, said Sako Barbarian, Primary Therapist at Begin Again Institute.
“Effective addiction treatment encounters the brain, body, and emotions,” he said. “It will give you a better understanding of the cause of addiction and the skills and tools to combat it.”
Trauma-Informed Therapy at Begin Again Institute
At Begin Again Institute, we understand that trauma often is the root cause of intimacy disorders, including sex, pornography, and masturbation addictions. In fact, BAI is the longest-standing treatment center in the U.S. specializing in the treatment of these disorders. And everything we do is through a trauma-informed lens.
If you’re experiencing an intimacy disorder or sex addiction, you can choose from our:
Each program includes trauma-informed therapies designed to meet each individual’s specific needs, all with the goal of helping you identify and heal from the root cause of addiction and stop negative behaviors.
We also offer a Partner Support Program to help your partner heal from the betrayal trauma that often accompanies these addictions.
Learn More About Trauma-Informed Care for Healing Intimacy Disorders
Are you dealing with unwanted compulsive sexual behaviors? Trauma-informed therapy at Begin Again Institute can help. For many people, this approach to therapy is the path to a happier, healthier life with the loving relationships they long for.
Begin Again Institute can help if you or a loved one needs help. Contact us for more information or to speak with an admissions specialist.
