Navigating Trauma Therapy: Which Approach is Right for You?
Disclaimer:
These therapies are for teens and adults. If you're looking for trauma therapy for kids, check out our pages on Play Therapy for more info.
Healing from trauma isn’t a straight line—it’s more like a winding road with a few bumps, detours, and maybe even a few potholes along the way. At Willow and Moss Counseling, we get that trauma can show up in all kinds of weird, unexpected ways. There’s no single magic fix, but the good news is there are plenty of ways to tackle it—and we’re here to break them down so you don’t have to sift through a bunch of confusing jargon to figure it out.
Let’s dive in and see which therapy might be the best fit for you (spoiler: it’s probably not just one).
Let’s Find the Right Therapy for You
There are a ton of therapies out there for trauma, and finding the right one can be the key to feeling like yourself again. Whether you want to dig deep into your past, reconnect with your body, or just change the way you think about stuff, there’s something for everyone.
At Willow and Moss Counseling, we’re all about finding what works best for you. If you want to explore any of these options—or just have a casual chat about what might help—we’re here for that, too. Let’s take this healing journey together, one step at a time.
1. EMDR Therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
What It Is:
EMDR is like hitting the reset button for your brain. You focus on your distressing memories while following the therapist’s hand movements, which helps your brain process trauma and release some of that emotional weight. It's great for any memories that are distressing or just feel stuck, lingering in a negative way.
How It Helps:
Helps “unfreeze” traumatic memories.
Reduces PTSD symptoms, like nightmares and flashbacks.
Works faster than most therapies, so you can get back to living your life sooner.
Good For:
People dealing with PTSD, stuck in flashbacks, or just tired of reliving the same old trauma.
If you want to dive deeper into EMDR and how it works, we’ve got a ton of pages on our website that break down the ins and outs. Check them out for more details!
2. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (MBCBT)
What It Is:
MBCBT is the lovechild of mindfulness practices and traditional Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). In other words, it’s a way to teach you to stay present in the moment and not get lost in all those trauma-based thoughts and worries. Oh, and therapists love a good acronym, don’t they?
How It Helps:
Teaches you how to stay present rather than getting stuck in worries about the past or future.
Combines mindfulness (like deep breathing) with good ol' thought-changing techniques.
Promotes self-compassion, so you can be a little kinder to yourself instead of beating yourself up.
Good For:
Anyone dealing with stress, anxiety, or the aftermath of trauma who needs to reclaim some control over their mind.
3. Exposure Therapy
What It Is:
Exposure therapy is exactly what it sounds like: you gradually face the stuff that triggers your trauma, until it’s no longer as terrifying. Honestly, it kind of sucks, but unfortunately, it’s super effective. Think of it like taking baby steps toward facing your fears—without getting thrown straight into the deep end.
How It Helps:
Slowly desensitizes you to trauma triggers.
Helps you stop avoiding things that make you anxious or scared.
Provides a gradual, less overwhelming approach to facing your fears.
Good For:
People who freeze up, avoid things that cause anxiety, or anyone dealing with PTSD or phobias.
4. Sandtray Therapy
What It Is:
This is a hands-on, non-verbal way to process emotions. You create scenes in a sandbox using miniatures. And no, this isn’t just for kids. I’ve spent a small fortune on miniatures so I can offer a variety of figures for you to express your trauma however you need. But hey, I can stop buying them anytime I want—it's not a problem.
How It Helps:
Lets you express feelings without words (perfect if talking feels like too much).
Helps you process implicit memories—the stuff that’s buried deep, outside of your conscious awareness.
Encourages creativity to work through tough emotions.
Provides a safe, gentle way to process trauma that words just can’t get to.
Good For:
Anyone—especially those who have a hard time talking about their trauma, or if you’re trying to process memories that are hard to put into words (like a lot of trauma tends to be). It’s also great for kids or anyone who needs a non-verbal outlet.
5. Narrative Therapy
What It Is:
When you get to write the story of your life, you get to decide where to start and where to end the chapters. And if this isn't your redemption arc? Well, maybe this is just the middle of your story—not the end. Narrative therapy helps you rewrite your life story, turning your trauma into just a chapter, not the whole damn book.
How It Helps:
Lets you see your trauma as just a part of your story, not the whole plot.
Helps you take back control and rewrite your narrative on your terms (because you’re the author here).
Focuses on empowerment and healing from the inside out, not just “getting over it.”
Good For:
Anyone who feels like their trauma has hijacked their entire story or if you’re ready to take back control and create your own narrative.
6. Somatic Experiencing
What It Is:
Sometimes, you’ve gotta sit in the shit. Somatic Experiencing is all about tuning into the physical sensations of your body—feeling your feelings as sensations—and learning what your trauma really feels like. It’s like emotional yoga, reconnecting you with your body and helping you release the physical tension trauma stores there. If you can’t feel it, you can’t move it, right? That’s why this one often goes hand-in-hand with EMDR.
How It Helps:
Reconnects you with your body to release all that pent-up tension.
Helps process trauma on a physical level, which can also help with anxiety, chronic pain, and stress.
Encourages you to feel your emotions physically, promoting emotional healing (even though it’s not always the most comfortable thing).
Good For:
Anyone who feels physically stuck, disconnected from their body, or dissociates heavily after trauma. Also good for those who experience physical symptoms from stress.
7. Psychodynamic Therapy
What It Is:
An oldie but a goodie. Based on the work of Freud and Jung, but without all the cigar metaphors. This therapy digs deep into your unconscious mind to uncover the deeper reasons behind why you feel and act the way you do. Think of it like a treasure hunt for emotional patterns and buried stuff you didn’t even know was there.
How It Helps:
Helps you understand how past experiences are quietly running the show in your present life.
Gives you a peek into unconscious feelings and triggers you didn’t even realize were operating.
Encourages some deep self-reflection for emotional growth and insight.
Good For:
Anyone wanting to understand the emotional patterns that are driving their behaviors, even if it means uncovering some uncomfortable truths.
8. Relational Therapy
What it is:
Relational therapy is an extension of psychodynamic therapy, focusing on how your past relationships have shaped your emotional world. It’s about exploring how those patterns show up in your current life and, importantly, in your relationship with your therapist. The therapeutic relationship itself is used to notice and work through those patterns in real-time, which is super helpful if you've dealt with complex or interpersonal trauma.
How It Helps:
Focuses on how your past relationships influence your present emotional experiences.
Uses the therapeutic relationship itself as a space to explore and repair relational patterns.
Helps rebuild trust and develop healthier, more fulfilling relationships outside of therapy.
Focuses on rupture and repair work, teaching you how to navigate conflict and reconnect with others.
Good For:
People who’ve experienced complex trauma, attachment issues, or anyone who struggles with forming or maintaining healthy relationships.
9. Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy
What It Is:
IFS therapy is often called parts work, and for good reason—it’s about getting to know all the different “parts” of yourself that have developed over time. These parts each play their own role, from your protective side to the wounded one, and everything in between. The goal is to find where things are out of whack and help bring those parts into a more balanced, trusting place. As Richard Schwartz, the creator of IFS, puts it: there are no bad parts. They’re all just trying to do their jobs.
How It Helps:
Helps you identify and heal the different parts of yourself—whether that’s your protective parts, the wounded ones, or the ones holding onto old trauma.
Promotes self-compassion and encourages a healthy dialogue between your internal parts.
Helps you release emotional wounds and find inner peace.
Good For:
Anyone dealing with inner conflict, struggling with self-criticism, or working through unresolved trauma. It’s especially helpful for those who feel like parts of themselves are in constant conflict.
Final Thoughts
We don’t do workbooks here, unless you really want one. I mean, I’ve got serious therapy worksheet trauma from my own childhood—who thought it was a good idea to hand a kid a CBT workbook to fill out at home? Not our vibe. We prefer to work with you in a way that feels, well, more human. If there’s something specific you want to dive into, we’ll figure it out together.
The point is, we're all about being flexible with what works for you—no judgment, no cookie-cutter approaches. We’re here to empower you to find what actually helps you feel better, not just follow some prescribed set of steps. Life’s complicated, and healing can be messy. But we’ll help you navigate it in a way that feels like progress.
Got questions? We’ll try to have answers. We don’t know everything (and honestly, who does?), but we know enough to help you figure out what’s going to work best for you and your brain. Just remember, there’s no “one-size-fits-all” for healing, and we’re not about giving you a cookie-cutter experience. This is your journey, and we’re just here to walk with you.
Contact Willow & Moss Counseling today to get started—the hard work doesn’t wait for anyone, but it also doesn’t have to suck.
Willow & Moss Counseling – Compassionate Therapy in Cherokee & Cobb County, Serving Woodstock, Holly Springs, Canton, Kennesaw, and Marietta.
