Updated June 24th, 2026
Trauma can affect people in ways that are difficult to explain until you’ve lived through it yourself. You may feel constantly anxious, emotionally numb, disconnected from others, easily overwhelmed, stuck in survival mode, or unlike the person you used to be.
One of the hardest parts about trauma is that many people do not immediately recognize what they have been through as trauma. You might minimize your experiences, compare yourself to others, or feel like what happened was not “bad enough” to affect you this deeply. But trauma is not defined only by the event itself. It is also shaped by how the experience impacted your emotional and nervous system afterward.
The good news is that healing is possible. Trauma therapy can help people better understand their experiences, process painful emotions and memories, improve coping skills, and begin feeling safer, more connected, and more in control of their lives again.
If you are considering trauma therapy in Chicago, you may have questions about what trauma therapy even is, who it helps, and how it works. Understanding what trauma therapy is can help you take the first step toward healing and support.
To understand what trauma therapy is and why people pursue it, it’s important to talk about what trauma is first. Trauma can be recent or long-term. It can refer to any adverse event. For example:
Trauma therapy is a kind of psychological treatment that helps people process traumatic events and get relief from their impacts. You can get therapy for trauma, whether an adverse event happened recently or a very long time (even decades) ago.
How do you know if you need trauma therapy? Everyone responds to trauma differently. It’s important to keep in mind that you don’t have to “have it worse” than someone else or meet a certain threshold for your experiences or feelings to matter.
If difficult experiences from the past are continuing to affect your emotions, relationships, sense of safety, or day-to-day life, trauma therapy may help you process what you’ve been through and begin healing. Common signs that you might benefit from trauma therapy include:
Many trauma survivors have endured certain symptoms for so long that they start to view them as a normal part of life - “just how they are.” In reality, this isn’t true. These are the kinds of impacts trauma therapy can help you overcome.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to trauma therapy. Different types of trauma treatment can help in different ways depending on your experiences, symptoms, personality, and what feels most comfortable to you.
For some people, learning coping and self-regulation skills may feel like the right place to start. Others may feel ready to process painful memories more directly or may want an approach that goes beyond traditional talk therapy.
As you read through the options below, pay attention to what resonates with you. Healing from trauma is deeply personal, and the right therapy should be tailored to your unique needs, goals, and comfort level.[2]
EMDR trauma therapy helps you reprocess traumatic, stressful, or emotionally difficult memories, reducing the distress you feel. To make it happen, EMDR therapists use bilateral stimulation (e.g., following a therapist's finger or lights with your eyes). It consists of eight phases.[3]
EMDR is less talk-heavy than traditional therapy. If you’ve spent hours speaking with therapists and feel frustrated about not getting the amount of relief you need, it’s not your fault. In some cases, talking can only do so much. A treatment like EMDR may be the solution.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a common type of therapy used for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders, and depression. It works by helping you identify and shift unhelpful thought patterns, such as negative beliefs you may have developed in response to trauma. Cognitive behavioral trauma therapy also examines how thoughts influence behavior.
For example, how fear impacts your ability to do the things you want and need to do. In trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, therapists guide you toward healthier, more realistic thought patterns and help you engage in behaviors that make your life better.
Internal family systems (IFS) help you explore different parts of yourself, such as the parts of you that hold onto trauma or parts of you that try to protect yourself from emotional pain through various coping mechanisms. For example, the parts that “fight” or the parts that “hide.”
It’s a great choice if you’re struggling with inner conflict or have a hard time understanding your feelings, behaviors, and reactions. Benefits of IFS for trauma often include increased self-compassion, self-understanding, a decrease in trauma symptoms and their effects, and emotion regulation.
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) was made for people struggling with intense feelings and emotional dysregulation. DBT focuses on four core skills:
DBT aims to help people feel more regulated, learn and use coping skills, increase tolerance for distress, and improve their relationships with others. It’s often conducted in a group therapy setting, though it can also be used in individual therapy.
Somatic experiencing focuses on how trauma is stored in the body. It focuses on techniques that calm your physical body and help your nervous system become more regulated. As the body releases stress and trauma during sessions through these strategies, people may experience temporary physical sensations, such as trembling or deep, spontaneous breathing.
Not only can this be ideal for those with physical trauma symptoms, but it’s helpful for people who don’t feel in touch with their body due to trauma or who have gotten what they can out of traditional talk therapy and want to focus on whole-person healing.
Narrative therapy helps you reframe your story and experiences. It separates your identity from trauma by shifting the focus from “what’s wrong with me?” to why your trauma reactions actually make sense and what you can do now as you move forward in life.
A therapist might help you unpack narratives you have created, even unconsciously, and how they affect you. They’ll often focus on moments of resilience and point out your strengths to you during sessions.
Prolonged exposure therapy is another evidence-based, frequently recommended treatment for PTSD and trauma. The goal of PE is to gradually expose yourself to trauma-related memories or situations with the support of a therapist to reduce avoidance, distress, and fear.
It isn’t the same as “just doing things that scare you.” Instead, it uses slow habituation. Your therapist helps you manage distress until your brain and body learn that they really are safe.
Cognitive processing therapy is a structured, evidence-based treatment for PTSD. It focuses on changing unhelpful beliefs related to trauma. These may relate to your sense of safety, trust, power/control, esteem, or intimacy.
In CPT sessions, a therapist will help you identify negative beliefs (e.g., “it was my fault,” “I can never have a healthy relationship”). After that, you’ll work together to challenge these specific, stuck beliefs. Then, the therapist will help you establish new, more beneficial beliefs.
Trauma therapy can come with an extensive range of benefits such as:
Some of the benefits of trauma therapy depend on what you’re struggling with. You’ll work with your therapist to set goals based on personal needs. For example, help navigating symptoms like intrusive thoughts and flashbacks, if that’s something you experience.
Starting trauma therapy can feel intimidating, especially if you’ve never talked about your experiences before or if opening up has felt unsafe in the past. Many people worry they will be pushed to talk before they’re ready, judged for their reactions, or overwhelmed by painful emotions. A good trauma therapist understands these concerns and works at a pace that feels safe and manageable for you.
Trauma therapy is not about forcing you to relive painful experiences before you are ready. It’s about helping you feel supported, understood, and more in control of your emotions, thoughts, and sense of safety over time.
Knowing what healthy trauma therapy should look like can also help you recognize red flags, such as a therapist who rushes the process, dismisses your experiences, or doesn’t make you feel heard. In trauma therapy, you should be able to expect:
Trauma therapy will involve the use of different techniques, depending on your needs and the approach(es) a therapist uses (e.g., IFS vs. EMDR). It’s not uncommon for trauma therapists to use more than one approach.
Now that you know what types of therapy you might be interested in, how do you choose the right trauma therapist? Here are some tips.
When appropriate, trauma survivors may benefit from seeing both a therapist and a psychiatrist. While it’s not the case for everyone, a combination of trauma therapy and medication can help improve treatment outcomes and is highly beneficial or necessary for some.
At Clarity Clinic, our compassionate team provides trauma-informed therapy and psychiatry services for children, teens, and adults. We have a wide range of mental health specialists with experience treating trauma, PTSD, anxiety, depression, and related challenges using evidence-based approaches tailored to your unique needs.
With multiple clinic locations throughout Chicago and online appointments available across Illinois, we make it easier to connect with the support that feels right for you. Whether you’re beginning therapy for the first time or looking for a new approach after struggling for a while, healing is possible — and you don’t have to go through it alone.
Browse our providers online or contact Clarity Clinic today to get started.
See How We Can HelpRelated Readings:
Yes. Clarity Clinic offers trauma therapy for children, teens, and adults. Our therapists use evidence-based approaches tailored to each person's unique experiences and goals.
Depending on your needs, treatment may incorporate modalities such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), mindfulness-based techniques, and other trauma-informed interventions.
We also offer psychiatry services for individuals who may benefit from medication management as part of their treatment plan.
Yes. Clarity Clinic offers trauma therapy both in person and online. We have multiple clinic locations throughout the Chicago area, making it easy to access care close to home.
For those who prefer greater flexibility or are unable to attend in-person appointments, we also provide secure telehealth therapy services throughout Illinois.
Getting started is simple. You can book online, or give us a call at (312) 815-9660 to get help scheduling an initial appointment. During your first session, your chosen mental health specialist will take the time to understand your concerns, discuss your goals, and begin building a personalized treatment plan.
When choosing a therapist, make sure to review their bio and credentials to find a therapist who specializes in trauma.
Trauma-informed therapy may be a good fit if you've experienced a traumatic event or difficult life experiences that continue to affect your emotions, relationships, self-esteem, or daily life. You do not need to have a PTSD diagnosis to benefit from trauma-informed care.
This approach recognizes the impact trauma can have on mental health and emphasizes safety, trust, collaboration, and empowerment throughout the therapeutic process.
If you're struggling with anxiety, depression, emotional numbness, hypervigilance, relationship challenges, or other symptoms that may be connected to past experiences, trauma-informed therapy may help.
[1] Ogle, C. M., Rubin, D. C., & Siegler, I. C. (2015, July). The relation between insecure attachment and posttraumatic stress: Early life versus adulthood traumas. Psychological trauma : theory, research, practice and policy. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4493437/
[2] American Psychological Association. (n.d.). PTSD and trauma: New APA guidelines highlight evidence-based treatments. Monitor on psychology. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2025/07-08/guidelines-treating-ptsd-trauma
[3] American Psychological Association. (n.d.). American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/psychotherapy/emdr-phases
I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. I specialize in trauma and anxiety disorders and am EMDR-certified. I use evidence-based approaches like CBT, DBT, ACT, and ERP to support individuals, couples, and groups.
