Page 199 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 5

Trauma Recovery Training at a Seminary? Introducing Global Trauma Recovery Institute

Phil Monroe (USA)
Telling Trauma Stories: What Helps, What Hurts

“It is impossible to give an account of our indivi- event is what triggers chronic psychological
dual lives without using the structure of story” 1 distress. This distress often is expressed in loss
of voice (literally or figuratively), disconnection
Few today question the value of talk therapy from self, others, and God, and results in loss of
to address the problems of life. Both effica- meaning in life.
cy and effectiveness studies indicate that most The most recent edition of the Diagnostic and
mental health patients benefit from counseling Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-
and psychotherapeutic interventions no mat- 5) sets the following symptom criteria for the
ter the counseling model employed (Messer & diagnosis of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Wampold, 2002; Seligman, 1995; Shedler, 2010; (PTSD) (2013, p. 271-2),
Wampold, 2001). Common factors such as ha-
ving a strong working relationship between the- A. Exposure to actual or threatened death,
rapist and client, agreeing on goals, and having serious injury, sexual violence (either to self,
hope for change may account for as much as to loved ones, or repeated exposure to trau-
seventy percent of counseling successes (Wam- matic details as caretaker)
pold, 2001). B. Presence of intrusive and distressing re-
minders of the trauma (e.g., dreams, flash-
But all forms of talk therapy are not equally backs, memories, negative reactions to cues
helpful. Some forms of talking about problems that symbolize the trauma)
may actually harm, especially when talking C. Persistent attempts to avoid reminders
about traumatic experiences. In this essay, I or thoughts, memories, and feelings of the
will review the common symptom profile and trauma
treatment phases for traumatic stress disorders. D. Negative cognitions and mood (e.g., on-
I will give primary attention to the ways coun- going fear and horror, self-hatred, inability
selors make mistakes when eliciting a client’s to feel positive feelings, feelings of detach-
trauma story. After identifying pit-falls, I will ment from others)
E. Chronic hypervigilance and fear arousal
then explore a few helpful guidelines. I will con- despite efforts to avoid re-experiencing the
clude by presenting a case to illustrate some of trauma
the guidelines.
Those who exhibit these symptoms often find
Brief Review of Psychosocial Trauma themselves running from memories of past
To flourish in a fallen world, humans must cope traumatic events but ever fearful that the pre-
well with the stressors of life. Most of the time, sent or future will be no different.
we respond well to stress by devising clever Surprisingly, most people who experience a
ways to solve problems and, in fact, stress can traumatic event either do not develop Posttrau-
lead to character and skill development. But matic Stress Disorder or they recover without
2
some stressors, such as sexual violence, war, do- professional intervention. For example, after
mestic abuse, and human or natural disasters, the 1994 genocide and subsequent two years of
overwhelm physical and psychological capaci- conflict in the region of Rwanda, one might ex-
ties leading to either acute or chronic traumatic pect to find PTSD rates nearing one hundred
stress symptoms. percent. Yet, prevalence studies such as Pham,
It appears that the experience of helplessness Weinstein and Longman (2004) indicate that
and inability to change the outcome of the just 24% of the population surveyed met crite-

1 Albert Mohler. http://www.albertmohler.com ria for PTSD some six years later. Of course, this
2 There is a growing body of research about Posttrauma- does not mean that this population was not still
tic Growth (PTG) after traumatic experiences.

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