Trauma Therapy
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Trauma Therapy *
Are you looking to heal some attachment wounds from childhood so that you can grow into your authentic self?
Have you experienced a traumatic event that you need to process and connect to tools so that you can regulate your nervous system and heal?
Do you struggle with perfectionism, self-worth, or relationships, and can't find where this difficulty came from?
Are you ready to begin your trauma healing journey, but want to make sure you work with a trauma therapist who really knows their stuff?
Supporting trauma is at the heart of what we do here at Minnesota Attachment Collective. Each of our therapists has advanced trainings and experiencing in trauma treatment- and we are here to support you.
Trauma Therapy in Minnesota
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has become more commonly known in the world of mental health. This can occur when someone experiences at least one trauma and meets PTSD symptoms of intrusive trauma memories or thoughts, avoidance of trauma triggers, and feeling dysregulated when exposed to reminders of their trauma.
While it is common for folks to dismiss their own traumatic experience if it doesn't seem significant enough to societal standards, we stress the importance that any event can have traumatic impacts depending on how it felt for you. One of our main specialties is in attachment trauma, which can look like PTSD, but can also look very different.
How Might Attachment Trauma Show up in Adulthood?
Since the wounding of attachment trauma can be so pervasive, you may not identify these experiences as trauma and instead view them as the normal way of life. While traumatic memories may occur, you might also not be able to easily identify a traumatic experience from your upbringing- and instead may feel like you're just not doing life right.
You may view yourself as not worthy of the care and acceptance that you would hold for others. You may have difficulty trusting family members, friends, and partners. You may doubt our self-worth and chances of joy and connection in life.
While attachment trauma can present as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or other trauma diagnoses, it also may not and instead looks like other mental health diagnoses from the outside. Sometimes attachment trauma appears as anxiety or depression, perfectionism, low self-worth, or difficulties in relationships. As wounding experiences can vary so greatly, the ways that it shows up for us as adults can differ greatly as well.
Often, a someone may present to therapy with anxiety or depression when a history of traumatic events have lead to their discomfort. If they are working with someone who isn't a trauma informed therapist, they may build great coping skills but not truly do the work needed to treat trauma.
We are committed to providing trauma informed care, and are able to spot complex trauma, intergenerational trauma, post traumatic stress disorder, and other experiences of unresolved trauma that may be contributing to your feelings of disconnection in the world.
What is Attachment Trauma?
Attachment trauma is also commonly known as “complex trauma/ complex ptsd”, “developmental trauma” as well as “intergenerational trauma”. We tend to use the word attachment trauma over here to really highlight the significance of attachment relationships.
The “big-T” traumas that are more common in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder are a bit more well-known today. These traumas might be a significant event, such as a home invasion or natural disaster. Such events may be more validated as trauma in our society. While these experiences still can occur with attachment trauma, that isn’t always the case.
Attachment trauma typically occurs in early attachment relationships, such as primary caregivers, relatives, or other significant relationships. While “big-T” traumas can certainly occur here, commonly these wounds can be seen as “small-t” traumas. Examples of this historical trauma include chronic invalidation, notions about conditional acceptance, or dismissal of emotional needs. If these moments occur fairly infrequently, they are not likely to have a significant impact- but, when they are the norm, they can change how we view ourselves, our relationships, and the world around us.
What Does Trauma Therapy Look Like at Minnesota Attachment Collective?
Our approach is specifically geared towards trauma work
Trauma therapy is a big part of the work that we do here, which is a big reason that we operate as a small group private practice. This allows us the flexibility to tailor therapy to healing trauma. Typically, trauma therapy begins with around six months or more with consistent (weekly to every other week) therapy to make some foundational progress. As trauma therapy can often be long term work, we make sure that clients can return to their therapist as needed. Rather than the overly booked mental health provider at larger clinics that we often see now a days, our trauma therapists make sure they have availability that supports client's long term trauma treatment, which may include less frequent therapy sessions or even scheduling as needed. Your therapist will always walk you through their recommendations as they change, and will make sure that you feel supported in the long term. We also offer both in-person and virtual therapy options, as either one of those options may feel comfortable for trauma treatment.
We will provide you with the skills that you need to process your trauma
Our trauma therapists are all trained in evidence based practices for healing trauma, which includes building up coping skills so that you are well equipped to safely process your trauma. Depending on where you're at, we may include dialectical behavior therapy to build distress tolerance skills, somatic practices to help regulate the nervous system, parts work to identify how different parts of you show up in response to trauma, as well as processing through talk therapy through a safe therapeutic relationship. We see safety, both in the relationship and skills foundation, as an important role in trauma therapy. We want to ensure that you are able to work through your experiences of trauma in a way that helps you connect to your authentic self, and eventually, build a life that feels truly worth living.
We will hold space for your story
When you feel ready, we can start processing your experiences relating to trauma. This includes exploring past childhood trauma as well as any more recent traumatic events that you have experienced. Therapeutic modalities that we tend to use for treating trauma are internal family systems therapy (IFS), narrative therapy, trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), polyvagal theory, somatic practices, as well as dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). Each trauma therapist at Minnesota Attachment Collective uses an individualized approach, and will tailor therapy sessions to what works best for you. Our goal is to make sure you feel seen, that the impacts of your traumatic experience is valid, and that you feel supported throughout your healing process.
We will help you build the life that you want to live
Trauma, whether it be due to a recent traumatic event or past trauma experiences, can have a significant impact on our mental health, sense of self, relationships, and overall self-worth. We are here to help you work through your traumatic experiences, connect to healing practices, and build a life that you want to live. Trauma therapy can help you to unlearn past unhelpful patterns, connect to new more supportive narratives, and feel confident in your work towards your personal goals. We want to make sure that you get a high level of trauma informed care so that you feel like you are making the progress in therapy that is important to you.
We are here to help.
Attachment trauma is at the heart of the work we do here at Minnesota Attachment Collective. Whether you are looking for healing around trauma or support navigating life transitions, we approach all of our work from a trauma-informed lens.
We Want to Help Hold Space for Your Healing
In all of the work that we do, we are mindful of attachment trauma and attachment wounds, which we feel is essential in treating trauma. We know that experiences in significant relationships have an impact on how we show up for ourselves- and so we want to help you hold space for yourself, heal, and connect to your values and goals in authentic ways.
We will hold space for your experiences. We value curious exploration, support, and acceptance. In our work together, we can sit with your attachment experiences to help you understand your story and identify what healing you need. The work we do here is relational, and our intention is that our therapeutic relationship can feel like a safe space for you to begin to repair these attachment wounds.
We utilize evidence-based practices for healing. Each trauma therapist at Minnesota Attachment Collective values staying up to date with trainings and trauma approaches so that they can provide the highest level of care. We don’t just throw the term “trauma therapy” around as a buzz word. We know our stuff and make sure we tailor our approach to support you best. We make sure that you have the grounding tools necessary to process and heal trauma safely
Meet our Trauma Therapists
While each of our therapists specialize in trauma, they all offer unique approaches as well as additional specialties so that you can find a therapist who is a great fit for your unique experiences and needs. Learn more about our therapists to find your best fit!
Kayla is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Perinatal Mental Health Certified Therapist (PMH-C), as well as Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP). In addition to trauma, she specializes in fertility challenges, pregnancy, postpartum, and parenthood. She is passionate about supporting clients in understanding and healing past attachment wounds so that they can connect to their authentic self and support healthy attachment in their family relationships. Kayla utilizes a lot of parts work from the Internal Family Systems approach as well as mindfulness and somatic approaches to support nervous system regulation. You can learn more about Kayla here!
Madisen Schillo is a Licensed Professional Counselor who is certified in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and has a certificate in Holistic Nutritional Consulting. In addition to trauma, she specializes in teen and young adult life transitions as well as eating disorders and body image concerns. Maddie offers DBT-focused sessions for those who need to build a wide range of coping skills before working through trauma, and also utilizes trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), as well as mindfulness and somatic practices for a holistic approach. You can learn more about Maddie here!
Are you ready to hold space for healing? We would be honored to get to be a part of your process.
Let’s work together.
For those located in the Twin Cities, we have in-person therapy sessions available in Eagan, Minnesota. We also have virtual therapy sessions available to anyone who lives in Minnesota.