Couples trauma counselling focuses on helping couples who have experienced trauma together. It aims to address the impact of trauma on the relationship and support healing and recovery for both partners. Here are some ways in which couples trauma counselling can be helpful.
Trauma Education: Couples trauma counselling provides education about the effects of trauma on individuals and relationships. It helps couples understand how trauma can influence their emotions, communication, trust, and overall dynamics within the relationship.
Creating Safety and Trust: Counselling creates a safe and supportive environment where couples can share their experiences of trauma and work towards rebuilding safety and trust within their relationship. The therapist helps establish guidelines for communication that ensure both partners feel heard, respected, and validated.
Processing Traumatic Experiences: Couples trauma counselling provides a space to process their individual and shared traumatic experiences. It allows partners to express their emotions, thoughts, and reactions in a supportive and non-judgmental setting.
Healing Trauma Triggers: Counselling helps couples identify and understand triggers related to their trauma. It assists in developing strategies to manage and cope with triggers when they arise in the relationship, fostering a sense of safety and minimising re-traumatisation.
Improving Communication and Connection: Couples trauma counselling focuses on enhancing communication and connection between partners. It provides tools and techniques to improve emotional intimacy, active listening, and empathy, fostering a deeper understanding and connection.
Rebuilding Attachment and Intimacy: Trauma can impact emotional and physical intimacy in relationships. Counselling supports couples in rebuilding attachment and intimacy, helping them navigate challenges and rediscover closeness and trust.
Addressing Individual and Relational Symptoms: Couples trauma counselling addresses individual trauma and relational symptoms that can arise. It helps couples navigate mood changes, emotional reactivity, avoidance, and relationship conflicts stemming from trauma.
Co-Regulation and Coping Strategies: Cassandra helps couples develop co-regulation skills to support each other during times of distress. She also teaches coping strategies and stress-management techniques that couples can use together to promote resilience and mutual support.
Strengthening Resilience and Future Planning: Counselling focuses on building resilience within the couple. It helps partners identify their strengths, set goals for the future, and develop strategies for moving forward together positively and healthily.
