PTSD & Trauma - Cornerstone Psychotherapy

There are so many reasons why people experience PTSD or generalized trauma. You might not even realize what happened to you in the past is currently affecting you. You may feel stuck, overwhelmed, and not yourself.

Therapy can help you get unstuck and reduce the effects of trauma. Through a variety of modalities you can utilize techniques such as relaxation, grounding, or meditation. We can explore and try to discover what caused the trauma in the first place so you can identify triggers and cope better. You’ll be empowered to improve your life and feel whole again. We can get through this!

Covid-19 and Mental Health

We all have experienced one of the most difficult years we could have ever imagined. We went through isolation, lockdowns, and uncertainty. We spent over a year not knowing what the next day would bring and trauma surrounded us on a daily basis. We experienced huge losses - loss of our lives as we previously knew it, diminished relationships because of social distancing, loss of work or difficult changes in our careers, loss of stability, loss of feeling secure and safe, loss of our worldview, and the death of loved ones. Many relationships ended because of differing opinions on Covid, politics, protests, and systemic racism. All of these can contribute to trauma and PTSD. We all experienced collective trauma and it’s important to get professional support if needed. I’m here to help and through our work in therapy, you can feel empowered, safe, and better!

Frontline Workers

The pandemic has been incredibly tough for all of us, but it has been especially difficult for those who have been working on the frontlines. Your life changed drastically seemingly overnight. You experienced challenges and loss greater than most. You’re terrified that you might catch Covid or worse or spread it to your loved ones unknowingly. You witnessed the devastating loss of life first-hand. Working in the healthcare field under “normal” conditions can be traumatic in and of itself, but during this pandemic it is unimaginable and unbearable for most. You don’t have to carry the trauma with you and continue to suffer in isolation.

Secondary Trauma

Many people believe that PTSD and trauma only happens to those who have experienced childhood abuse or fought in a war. However, trauma can happen to anyone at any time and anywhere. Secondary trauma occurs when someone has prolonged exposure to another person’s trauma. This can happen by talking to someone you know personally who has experienced trauma, watching the news, witnessing societal and global events - such as systemic racism, police brutality, protests, Asian hate crimes, Covid-19, or politics - through news, television, or social media. Although we may be separated and isolated from these events, we can be traumatized from witnessing or learning about them second hand.

Secondary trauma can also occur for those who work in settings where they are exposed to other people’s trauma. This can include essential and frontline workers, educators, medical professionals, emergency responders, lawyers, and even psychotherapists. If you experienced traumatic events first-hand or spoke to someone who experienced trauma, its effect on your mental health is important to recognize and you may need to seek professional help and support.

Therapy for Veterans

Many military veterans experience mental health issues including PTSD, anxiety, and/or depression. Those who served in active duty are likely to struggle in their daily lives because of what they went through while serving our country. Do you have flashbacks or nightmares? Do you avoid connecting with others and notice that you’re isolating yourself? Do you feel guilty, shame, or blame others for what you went through? Are you having a difficult time transitioning back to civilian life? These are common feelings of military veterans, but you don’t have to suffer alone any longer. Therapy can help you cope and help empower you to feel at peace and more in control in all aspects of your life.

Childhood Trauma

Whatever the reason for how you are feeling now, you don’t need to live like this forever. In therapy I can help you overcome some of your past traumas and provide hope for a better quality of life.

It’s never too late to get support, begin the healing process, and start feeling better. If you experienced childhood trauma due to physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse and neglect, it is possible to improve your mental health, no matter how long ago the trauma occurred.

People often think of emotional trauma as intentional abuse, but there are a lot of different types of trauma that could be leading to how you are feeling currently. Neglect, poverty / financial instability, hunger and food insecurity, bullying, and sexual assault / date-rape, are just some examples and experiences that lead to lingering trauma. When people experience trauma at an early age and it goes untreated or undiagnosed, it can develop into negative thoughts, self-talk, and patterns of behavior well into adulthood.

If you are experiencing certain feelings and noticing certain behaviors, but you can’t quite understand why it’s happening, it could be a result of something painful you experienced during childhood or adolescence. Therapy can help you unpack the trauma in a safe space so you can explore the source of your hurt and reduce your emotional pain.

I Believe in You

You are tired of being traumatized by this racist world we live in. Your therapist shouldn’t add to that. As a Jamaican Asian therapist, I understand what it means to be Black, to be perceived as Black, and to straddle different spaces, communities, and wanting to belong.

The power of one can’t be underestimated. Oppression starts with making you believe you CAN’T. The first step to overcoming oppression is believing in yourself and having the belief that YOU CAN. Remember: wherever you are - YOU ARE IN THE ROOM. YOU ARE SOMEONE. YOU ARE SOMEBODY. YOU COUNT. One is powerful enough to take over the masses if that person believes in oneself enough.

I believe AND KNOW it’s possible to belong to two worlds, to be successful, and continue to be rooted in your culture and community at the same time. You have the power to break the patterns of self-doubt. I can help you. We can do this together.

Therapy for PTSD & Trauma