Trauma coaching
Children don’t get traumatized because they are hurt. They get traumatized because they’re alone with the hurt.
Dr. Gabor Mate
What is trauma coaching?
Most simply put, trauma coaching serves as a supportive partnership for people who have had overwhelming and painful life experiences.
The focus is on present day impacts and ways to move forward without retelling or reliving past painful events.
The specifics of this can vary greatly by client need and coach experience and expertise.
How I see trauma coaching...
Trauma coaching to me is more than support. It is a way of being with each other during moments of pain. It is about communicating the message; you are not alone. I believe such human experience is both invaluable and deeply restorative/comforting/soothing after painful experiences.
I work with adult women who are recovering from things that hurt them in their childhood.
My trauma coaching is centered around the following:
⁘ Safety resourcing (see more here)
⁘ Brain-based (neuroregulation) approaches
⁘ Body-based (somatic) approaches
⁘ Relational approaches
I deeply integrate my training in child development, polyvagal theory, and the somatic principles of NeuroAffective touch® to complement coaching services.
These approaches are self-directed and non-pathologizing.
Adult + inner child relationship...
At the heart of my coaching is the relationship between the adult and the inner child.
The "inner child" is the younger self who formed early in life and resides within each of us. She houses our emotional hearts, and she wants nothing more than to feel nurtured, loved, and protected.
"Adult you" can do this for her.
By forming a relationship with her in the present you can tend to her unmet childhood needs and re-nurture her.
When you think about your inner child, how would you describe her internal world?
Maybe she was known as the "quiet" or "sensitive" one
Maybe her emotions felt "too big" for her body
Maybe she kept her feelings and her needs hidden
Maybe she felt undeserving of kindness or care
All of these things hurt.
If your child self was never taught how to navigate these things, it's possible that your adult self never did either. Such unmet needs from childhood can resurface in adulthood as emotional overwhelm, feeling numb or disconnected from your body, feeling responsible for others, struggling with boundaries, or being hard on yourself.
These represent unmet needs, not something wrong with you. Such patterns are common after traumatic experiences, and they are understandable responses to what you lived through. Part of my work is understanding that. It is looking at how your early experiences from childhood still show up in your life today and finding gentle and practical methods to move forward.
Please hear me when I say I understand the vulnerability in this. It is no small feat to trust someone new with the sensitivity and preciousness of our child hearts. Children are meant to be cherished and protected- always. And I will do everything I can to honor that trust.
A word on therapy...
This is not therapy. Trauma coaching does not operate within a clinical/medical model and does not diagnosis or treat mental health conditions. It does not go into the traumatic details/memories of the past like you would in therapy. Instead, it uses relationship, body, and brain-based interventions to go around the trauma to create safety and resilience in the present.
With that being said, I have found that the safety resourcing and nervous system regulation from trauma coaching can pair well with trauma therapy and can often make it more effective. Clients can often go deeper into their trauma therapy work when they have a more solid safety foundation.
I work with people who have done therapy in the past, are currently in therapy, or plan to do therapy in the future. I also refer to therapists when needed.
"Have you done your own trauma work?"
This is such a fair and necessary question for anyone who works with people with trauma. I invite this question. Lived experience plays a large role in my development of this coaching practice. If you want to know more, ask me. Please, ask me. It can be a powerful way to establish a sense of safety and relatability.
I am trained by the Global Trauma Institute (GTI), an organization founded by trauma survivors, for trauma survivors.
Scope of practice statement for GTI Coaches:
Global Trauma Coaches are certified professionals trained through the Global Trauma Institute to provide integrative, trauma-responsive support services. Rooted in cultural humility, evidence-informed practices, and a commitment to ethical integrity, GTI coaches offer psychoeducational, resilience-building, and wellness-focused interventions that promote safety, empowerment, and healing for individuals and communities affected by trauma.
*Disclaimers:
I do not work with clients with acute safety concerns, including but not limited to active addiction, risk of self-harm, or risk of harm to others.
I do not provide emergency or crisis management services.
I do not diagnosis or treat physical/mental health conditions.
To read more, please feel free to visit Global Trauma Institute