Trauma Therapy in Berkhamsted: Working with PTSD and trauma
Meaningful recovery from trauma is possible, though it's rarely about "getting back to normal." Instead, healing involves the slow, steady work of processing what was too much to process at the time, and allowing the nervous system to recalibrate in the present.
After many years as a therapist in Berkhamsted I've witnessed countless people dealing with all sorts of trauma. Recovery doesn't mean forgetting what happened or becoming who you were before, it means reclaiming your capacity for safety, connection, and the possibility of calm for your nervous system.
Let's explore a little of what working with trauma and PTSD looks like.
What is trauma/PTSD and how does it affect you?
PTSD fundamentally disrupts how your nervous system processes safety and threat.
Psychoanalyst Philip Bromberg wrote that trauma represents 'the precipitous disruption of self-continuity.' Unlike everyday stress that comes and goes, trauma creates lasting breaks in your sense of being a coherent, continuous self, and in your sense of a predictable, consistent reality. After traumatic experiences, your fundamental sense of yourself and the world is radically altered.
When overwhelming experiences exceed your natural coping abilities, they don't simply become memories you can file away. Instead, they become embedded in your nervous system as ongoing alerts to potential danger, even when you're objectively safe.
Traumatic memory is stored differently
Traumatic experiences are stored differently than normal memories. Because they represent moments of intense threat they overexcite parts of our brain that govern primal, survival responses. As Judith Herman in her seminal book Trauma and Recovery states:
'Traumatic memories lack verbal narrative and context; rather, they are encoded in the form of vivid sensations and images'
These sensations and images are often more subconscious than conscious. This explains why trauma survivors often find themselves having intense reactions to seemingly innocent reminders - their heart suddenly racing, muscles tensing without reason, or waves of nausea appearing from nowhere. They might experience sudden emotional flooding that feels completely disconnected from what's happening around them, or find themselves feeling strangely detached from their own body, as if they're observing their life from a distance while remaining perpetually alert to potential threats.
The Three Faces of Traumatic Symptoms
Judith Herman notes three characteristics of trauma:
'The many symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder fall into three main categories. These are called "hyperarousal," "intrusion," and "constriction." Hyperarousal reflects the persistent expectation of danger; intrusion reflects the indelible imprint of the traumatic moment; constriction reflects the numbing response of surrender.'
Overwhelm (Hyperarousal) Your nervous system remains in constant high alert—scanning for danger, startling easily, struggling with sleep, feeling perpetually anxious or agitated.
Re-experiencing (Intrusive Symptoms) The traumatic moment breaks through into present awareness through nightmares, flashbacks, or sudden emotional crashes that feel completely out of proportion to current circumstances.
Shutdown (Constriction, avoidance and Numbness) Your system protects itself by dampening all feeling—emotional disconnection, feeling like you're observing life rather than living it, or avoiding anything that might trigger memories.
Why you can't just 'get over' trauma
Society often treats trauma recovery like healing from a broken bone, something that should mend completely given enough time. This misunderstanding causes additional suffering for trauma survivors who wonder why they can't simply "move on."
Trauma isn't what happened to you, it's what continues happening inside you. This is the insight from physician Gabor Maté. The effect of trauma is that the nervous system is still responding to the stress long after the events surrounding it have ended, and this is not something that you can choose to consciously just move on from. It's an unconscious process. However while we cannot alter past events, we can change how those experiences live within us now.
Working with trauma in this regard is about restoring flexibility to a nervous system that's become stuck in limited modes of functioning. As Philip Bromberg writes:
"Psychological trauma occurs in situations, explicitly or implicitly interpersonal, in which self-invalidation (sometimes self-annihilation) cannot be escaped from or prevented and from which there is no hope of protection, relief, or soothing."
Soothing here is the operative word. In responding to overwhelming circumstances, the nervous system becomes preoccupied with threat and this prevents ever really finding soothing through calm and down regulated states of relaxation.
Unresolved trauma maintains its grip when past experiences continue to:
- Shrink your capacity for calmness, trust, or self-expression
- Create compulsive behaviors to avoid feeling overwhelming emotions
- Hijack your present experience with intense disabling states that don't quite make sense
Creating Safety: The Foundation of Trauma Work
Many people believe they must immediately confront their traumatic memories, but this approach often backfires without proper preparation. You need to feel calm and supported before you can safely process overwhelming material, and this is the value of the therapeutic relationship.
Early trauma work focuses on expanding what therapists call your "window of tolerance", the zone where you can experience emotions without becoming overwhelmed or shutting down entirely.
Within this window, you can think while experiencing emotions, stay present during difficult conversations, make conscious choices rather than reacting automatically, and maintain your sense of connection to both yourself and others.
How I Approach Trauma Recovery in My Berkhamsted Practice
I work with trauma gently, slowly and at a rate that helps you to feel safe enough to engage in exploratory work.
Safety is promoted by:
Pacing: When you go at the pace that's right for you, you have a sense that you can cope with thinking and feeling about the things you've been through.
Attending: By attending to the experiences in the body that accompany traumatic memories, you can start to trust that you can cope with what your body does when it's moving into stimulated states.
Experiencing and reflecting: By reflecting together in an environment of trust and safety you learn that you can be aware of what's happening inside you, instead of shutting it down. This promotes the kind of emotional and psychological digestion that allows for recovery.
What Recovery Looks Like
Genuine trauma recovery involves integration rather than elimination. You're not trying to erase your experience or return to some previous version of yourself.
Instead, healing means developing resilience to navigate triggers without being completely hijacked by them, reclaiming your capacity for genuine intimacy and trust with others, finding meaning and perhaps even discovering unexpected capacities. Many clients discover capacities for empathy, wisdom, and depth that they didn't possess prior to working consciously with their trauma. Sometimes this is referred to as post traumatic growth.
Recognizing When Professional Support Is Needed
Consider trauma-informed therapy if you experience:
- Persistent sleep disturbances or nightmares
- Feeling constantly anxious or emotionally flat
- Difficulty maintaining close relationships
- Physical symptoms without medical explanation
- Feeling like you're living life from the outside
- Overwhelming reactions to certain situations or reminders
Frequently Asked Questions About PTSD Recovery
Can childhood trauma cause PTSD in adults?
Absolutely. Developmental trauma from childhood often has profound effects on adult relationships, self-worth, and emotional regulation. These early experiences significantly impact how we perceive safety and connection throughout life.
What's the difference between PTSD and complex trauma?
PTSD typically results from specific traumatic events, while complex trauma develops from ongoing exposure to harmful situations, especially during childhood. Complex trauma often requires longer-term treatment focused on building basic life skills and safety.
Do I need to remember everything that happened to heal?
No. Memory recovery isn't necessary for healing. Many people heal effectively by working with how trauma shows up in their current life and nervous system responses, regardless of specific memory details.
How do I choose the right trauma therapist?
Look for therapists specifically trained in trauma work who emphasize safety and nervous system regulation. A good trauma therapist will never push you to process material before you're ready and will always prioritize your sense of safety over making progress. As always it's the connection between the two of you that's one of the biggest predictors of good outcomes.
Ready to explore trauma recovery in a safe, supportive environment?
I offer trauma-informed counselling and therapy in Berkhamsted combining gestalt therapy with acupuncture to support both psychological healing and nervous system regulation. If you have any questions please feel free to be in touch.
Contact Details:
Phone: 07717 515 013
Email: sean@seanheneghan.com
Location: Berkhamsted Chiropractic Clinic, 69 High Street, Berkhamsted
Serving clients from Berkhamsted, Tring, Hemel Hempstead, Leighton Buzzard, and throughout Hertfordshire.
References and Suggested reading:
- van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score. Penguin Books
- Maté, G. (2022). The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing. Avery
- Herman, J. (1992). Trauma and Recovery. Basic Books
- Bromberg, P. (1998). Standing in the Spaces. The Analytic Press
About Sean Heneghan
Sean Heneghan is a BACP registered counsellor and British Acupuncture Council member who has been serving Berkhamsted for over 20 years. He specializes in trauma-informed gestalt therapy integrated with traditional acupuncture, offering a unique approach that addresses both psychological healing and nervous system regulation.
Services:
- Trauma-focused gestalt counselling
- Traditional acupuncture for anxiety and nervous system support
- PTSD and complex trauma recovery
- Integration of somatic and psychological approaches