A Trauma Therapist that Specializes in ‘Identity’

I specialize in helping people make sense of how their life experiences have shaped their identities, and how to take more control over what that looks like, moving forward.

Wow that felt good to say... err write. When I was fresh out of grad school and people would ask about the types of trauma I specialized in, it always made me squirrelly. No, not because I lacked the specializations, but because I was honestly torn.

On one hand, I had one hundred percent went through the rigorous training, licensing, and certification processes it takes to provide the evidence-based EMDR Therapies, that PTSD and cases of severe, complex trauma can benefit from; On the other hand,

I was torn between giving them...

1. An answer that was literal and could be proven by little pieces of paper saying "trained, certified, informed," etc... in "X" Therapy practices, or

2. An answer that felt more true to my core, but more vague sounding, especially coming from the mouth of a "newborn therapist."

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Saying that I specialize in "Identity"

and "Identity Trauma" feels more true than anything I could point out to you on my CV. It feels true in terms of my beliefs on healing, my application of therapeutic techniques in sessions, and the mental health outcomes of therapy I've provided and experienced for myself.

Half of the story is that I'm over this one-size fits all debate of diagnosis and prognosis (foreseeable outcome). It’s great in some circumstances, but can also be extremely off-putting in ones where people assume clinical diagnosis is a necessary access code, to benefit from the therapeutic interventions that could improve anyone’s quality of life.

The other half of it involves my personal journey in self discovery, and put more plainly-  how I did, do, and aspire to continue showing up in life as myself. But to understand “Identity Trauma,” we first have to understand more about Identity and Identity Development in general.

Here are several spheres that influence on how I show up in my life:

(Reflect on your own experience while reading, your influences might overlap with mine)

At the core of this- is identity- who I was, am, and strive to be, as well as whom you were, are, and strive to become.

Identity is a Process

I wish this was a step 1-5, unidirectional growth and discovery process, but that would be assuming a highly unlikely reality- that all spheres influencing our identities stack up perfectly, with complete clarity, equal importance, and in sync momentum towards a shared ideal version of ourselves, consistently, without question, forever. AND that all of our past and future experiences are each 100% healthfully processed, never resulting in a single negative thought, or worse, a negative self belief system.

A more relatable reality

You’ve heard people say, “Identity development is a lifelong process.” However, you might not have looked at this process, under a lens where you can break it down, to increase you understanding, awareness, and confidence in taking more control over it.

This is necessary for people who are aware of misaligned or conflicting spheres of identity influence, those who simply feel unfulfilled in their lives, and even those who have no idea what’s going on with their mental health symptoms, beyond the fact that they’re making life seem unbearable at times.

Once broken down, our individual identity development processes reveal the unique origin stories of our helpful, unhelpful, true, and some false, beliefs about ourselves and the world around us.

These beliefs, combined with personality quirks, and internalized experiences fuel the fire behind what we take away from our interactions in life involving those social norms, family values, relationships, etc... A more succinct visual might look like this:

The result?

identity, whether healthfully and helpfully developed, or the result of traumatic experience.

A Fresh Look at Identity Development could be Life Changing- it was for me.

To truly see yourself in a light that makes you proud to think, “I’m the type of person that is........... (fill in the blank),” you have to be willing to bring your entire collection of identity influences and experiences into the light first.

In this way, you make their individual meaning and connections to each other visible enough to decide which ones to bring more into the light, and which to repurpose into stepping stools, for lifting up those aspects of yourself you want to be highlighted more.

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EMDR Therapy, more often than not, focuses on healing within the spheres of Internalized Experiences and Beliefs, most commonly, self-beliefs. The effects of this can have a powerful impact on aspects of one's identity they might not have even realized could be strengthened, to further improve their quality of life.

It's because you're not paying for a specialized form of therapy, just to reiterate the changes you know you have to make in your day-to-day environment. EMDR Therapists can help you reveal some environmental tweaks you might not have realized could be helpful, but the real changes you're paying an EMDR Therapist for are ones that you're less likely able to start on your own

My journey of identity development followed a course similar to the above. Today, it involves a new sphere of influence, helping others discover, rediscover, emphasize, and/ or revive the self beliefs and personal experiences that nurture the version of their personal identities, that they'd prefer to live out.

While it’s a no-brainer that many forces in life shape who we are- those within us, and between us- we can’t forget this-

Now, you’re ready to learn more about “Identity Trauma.” Stay tuned though, it’ll be in another blog post coming up!