Like a river
counseling
Deborah Meabon, LCSW
Specializing in Trauma-Focused Therapy
Hope is the fuel...
for a destination worth traveling towards...
My mission is to help others find or reclaim a sense of hope.
There is a saying in the trauma therapy world that no one goes into this work unless they have scars. I remember learning my first trauma term in college - vicarious trauma. This was my first exposure to the idea that PTSD is a condition that is more prevalent in society than previously imagined. This opened up a whole new way of understanding the painful areas of human experience. I expand more on my training and experience in the FAQS section.
In 2002, I married the man of my dreams. We enjoy traveling, biking and we have a joint passion of raising dogs who need homes with lots of love and patience. I have a deeply fulfilling faith, and enjoy creative expression in various forms, including crocheting, scrapbooking, and music.
What is Trauma-Focused Therapy?
In recent years, the term “trauma informed” surfaced. Trauma informed is the concept that when a person is behaving in a way that seems “inappropriate” to have as the first thought, “what happened to them?” instead of “what’s wrong with them?” Trauma-focused therapy takes this concept and applies it to therapy treatment. So, if unresolved traumatic memories are causing symptoms in a person’s life, the most effective way to address this is to provide services that have been created to heal the wounds caused by those memories.
How do I know if I need Trauma Therapy?
If you have experienced trauma in your life and still feel emotional distress about these experiences, you would benefit from Trauma Therapy. Trauma is an experience where you feel your life or someone else’s life is in danger, or like you are not in control. This would include all forms of abuse, sexual assault/rape, criminal activity, bullying, accidents, certain forms of grief/loss, natural disasters, medical traumas, Covid experiences, discrimination, and more.
What will a typical session be like?
The initial session(s) will be spent gathering basic information, preparing your individual goals for therapy services, and learning more detailed information about therapy services I provide. After this initial phase, we will work together developing tools that will help manage anxiety and depression symptoms. When you are ready, we will begin working on trauma history memories.
What treatment methods do you use?
For healing from trauma history, I primarily use EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing). You can learn more about this type of treatment at www.emdria.org.
Some people don’t respond well to EMDR. I am also trained in Progressive Counting, Trauma-Focused CBT, and Flash Technique, which are also effective for healing trauma memories. Additional methods I use on a regular basis include: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Internal Family Systems, Mindfulness.
What if I don’t feel ready to work on my trauma history?
I recognize that the idea of working on past trauma can be anxiety-producing. For this reason, I alternate between focusing on learning new tools to manage these symptoms, and learning about how past trauma experiences impact our ability to focus, think clearly, and access memory functions. Because trauma impacts each person differently, I provide gentle guidance through a healing process tailored for each individual. We never move into working on trauma memories without your full awareness and consent.
Have more questions?
Please reach out to me, so we can schedule a free, no-obligation phone call.
