Trauma responses and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are serious psychological conditions that can impact every aspect of a person’s life. Experiencing a traumatic event, such as an assault, an accident, a natural disaster, or combat often leads to symptoms or a diagnosis of PTSD, which may affect someone’s health, happiness, and overall wellness.

Fortunately, treatment is available for trauma and PTSD. Online therapy, also known as e-therapy, makes mental health care both accessible and affordable. You don’t have to keep suffering from PTSD and trauma symptoms alone. Read on to learn more about how online therapy can help you or a loved one recover from trauma.

How Trauma Impacts Our Lives

Trauma can happen to anybody at any point in their lives. A traumatic event may happen once or many times, and countless different situations can lead to trauma. No two people react to these in the same way–what deeply affects one person may not bother someone else.

When we experience a traumatic event, our brains shut down and go into reactive mode. Stress hormones like cortisol and norepinephrine are released, triggering a survival response we have little to no control over. You’ve probably heard of going into “fight or flight” modes, but there are several other ways people react to traumatic events in the moment. The five main types of trauma reactions are:

• Fight: going on the defensive in some way
• Flight: attempting to run away from the stressor
• Freeze: leaves the person paralyzed by fear and unable to move
• Flop: similar to freeze, but the person may become unresponsive, dissociate, or even pass out
• Fawn: becoming overly friendly to stop harm

After a traumatic event ends, the body begins to return to a normal state. Most people will notice that symptoms of panic, such as rapid breathing, shaking, or nausea, dissipate within half an hour. However, not everyone is able to fully return to regular functioning. Some people get stuck in survival or reactive mode after the event and find themselves reliving it over and over, which can lead to PTSD.

Signs and symptoms of PTSD may include:

• flashbacks
• agitation and irritability
• anxiety or panic attacks
• nightmares
• dissociation
• intrusive thoughts
• hypervigilance
• guilt or shame
• isolation
• self-destructive behavior

These symptoms can negatively impact every part of the person’s life, including their job, relationships, hobbies, and health. Many people believe they will eventually go away on their own, but this isn’t typical. However, there are treatment options that can help people overcome their trauma in a healthy way.

Types of Online Therapy for PTSD and Trauma

Online therapy, which is offered through the VeriNew platform, is a valuable resource for people who can’t or don’t want to attend traditional in-person therapy. People may choose virtual therapy for financial reasons, due to hectic daily schedules, for added privacy, or to be seen more quickly and regularly. It’s also easier to shop for a therapist who works for your specific needs rather than relying on who is closest to you.

There are a few key types of therapy that work well for treating trauma and PTSD, and many of them can be performed equally effectively in an online setting.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of the most popular forms of therapy in use today. It’s effective for a wide range of issues, from PTSD and trauma to depression, sleep disorders, substance abuse, anger management, and more.

This form of talk therapy works by helping the patient identify situations that have occurred in their life and determine what negative thought patterns have resulted from those situations. Next, the patient and therapist will work on reshaping the negative thought patterns into more positive ones. Eventually, it will become a habit to have positive thought patterns and behaviors integrated into daily life. This typically takes between five and 20 CBT sessions.

Stress Inoculation Therapy (SIT) is a form of CBT that is popular for treating trauma and PTSD. It teaches patients healthy coping mechanisms for managing trauma responses and PTSD symptoms so they don’t turn to harmful behaviors. Another form is Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), which uses a 12-session plan to tackle past traumas and identify how the patient currently feels about those events.

SIT, CBT, CPT, and similar forms of this therapy utilize deep breathing, roleplaying, journaling, emotional reasoning, and other techniques during sessions.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a highly structured form of therapy that works by having the patient think about a traumatic memory while also practicing bilateral stimulation, which is typically done through eye movements. In online therapy, the therapist may have the patient blink or move their eyes in a patterned way. In-person EMDR sessions sometimes use special light devices, speakers, or tapping on certain body parts to elicit a specific response.

By following these guided instructions, patients are able to process their trauma in a safe environment. Using sensory stimuli helps the brain and body work together to effectively bring back painful memories without avoiding them, which helps the brain heal the wound and leave the ongoing trauma response behind for good.

A newer form of EMDR is Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). ART is particularly effective for trauma and PTSD since it uses eye movements to make painful memories less intense and rapidly reduce the severity of PTSD symptoms.

Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapy is used to treat anxiety, PTSD, and fear. In an exposure therapy session, the therapist will work to slowly expose the patient to a situation, activity, or phobia that causes stress. It’s founded on the belief that avoiding fears only makes them worse or more stressful in the long run.

Exposure therapy helps patients conquer their fears in a safe, supported space. It often goes hand-in-hand with other forms of therapy, such as CBT, to ensure the patient both overcomes their fears and learns healthy coping mechanisms for when they come up again in the future.

Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) is a form of exposure therapy that is effective at treating trauma responses and PTSD. According to the APA, it works by “The therapist [asking] the patient to describe his or her emotions, thoughts, sensory information and physiological responses in detail. The patient is asked to narrate the traumatic experience and relive the emotions experienced without losing connection to the present.”

This is a short-term form of therapy that typically works in just a few sessions.

Getting Help for Trauma and PTSD

If you’ve been battling symptoms of PTSD or an ongoing trauma response, help is available. Sign up for online therapy through VeriNew today to get your life and happiness back at your convenience.