Narrative Trauma Therapy Edmonton

Unresolved trauma can cause you to experience a range of short and long term effects. Thinking about trauma or traumatic events can create an intensity that can be painful, and often memories of traumatic events become foggy and incomplete as your brain struggles to store them effectively. Narrative trauma therapy leans on the power of storytelling – and what happens in your brain when we create narratives – to create a more adaptive way of looking at and understanding trauma.

What is Narrative Trauma Therapy?

Narrative trauma therapy, sometimes also referred to as narrative exposure therapy (NET), was developed on the principle that we tend to make meaning out of our lives by organizing our memories into a story or narrative. Narrative therapy uses those stories to help you change how you emotionally react to past events and trauma.

It is often used to treat complex PTSD where a number of traumatic events have happened over a prolonged period of time, but it is a flexible form of therapy that can be adapted for many circumstances or types of traumas. It can be effectively used to treat individuals who’ve experienced the following:

Childhood or domestic abuse
Emotional neglect
Large scale events like war or natural disaster
Single events like a robbery, car crash or the death of someone close

Narrative trauma therapy can have a positive impact in as little as 3-6 sessions, but it is recommended a full course of treatment should take place over 4-12 sessions. This form of therapy can be used in individual or group sessions and has been used to help both children and adults overcome their PTSD or trauma-related symptoms.

By recounting and building a story around the traumatic events that include a broader context of your entire life, a therapist can help you discover a fuller picture and meaning, rather than viewing yourself or the world around you in just the context of the trauma. For example, if you have experienced an abusive relationship where you were not cared for and neglected, narrative trauma therapy can help you identify through other memories and life events when people and situations have made you feel loved, worthy and cared for. Taking a broader view and telling your whole story can help diminish residual negative impacts of abuse.

How Does Narrative Trauma Therapy Work?

Narrative trauma therapy may begin with a recount of your life from the very beginning, from your early years. A therapist will guide you through childhood and your life as a young adult before you recount events of your adult life. While you are building this narrative with your therapist, you’ll focus on moments involving your traumatic experiences, spending more time there, but still recounting them within the greater context of your life. You’ll be supported in exploring your trauma in detail, with your therapist helping you to reduce distress and physical manifestations of the stress and trauma as you go. Through these controlled exposures, you’ll progressively work your way through your entire life’s timeline before you can summarize your narrative toward the end and work with your therapist to figure out where you go next.

Who Should Consider Narrative Therapy?

Narrative trauma therapy is best-designed for those who have been diagnosed with PTSD or have experienced trauma and are suffering from symptoms of:

Being easily startled
Difficulty sleeping
Always being guarded against danger
Substance abuse or addictive behaviours
Trouble concentrating
Difficulty regulating anger
Feelings of guilt or shame

Post-traumatic stress disorder can have a huge impact on your ability to complete typical activities like going to work, taking care of yourself and maintaining relationships with family and friends. At Equinox Therapeutic we can help you explore if narrative trauma therapy could help you work through your trauma and heal. If you’d like to set up a consultation to find out more, visit our contact page.

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To figure out if therapy is right for you, talk to one of our registered psychologists or counsellors.