Laurel Mallonee LCSW

Every person that I work with gets individual care, but there are a few similarities in approaches that I take and models that I pull from, especially when it comes to trauma work.

1. My style. I am not usually super structured in my sessions, as I tend to use cues from clients about what can be tolerated and what direction to go that day. However, at times there will be need for structure and we can work together on what that might look like for you. We use your body and your nervous system as a guide more than anything. I don’t normally assign homework unless requested, or unless there is something I would really like you to put focus on. I like to check in frequently about how you feel therapy is going for you and make that an ongoing dialogue. If you don’t feel you’re getting your needs met with me I am happy to try and help you find a better fit!
2. Education. It’s crucial to understand how trauma impacts our bodies, nervous systems, brains, and beliefs. I encourage everyone to read The Body Keeps the Score by Dr. Bessel Van der Kolk, especially if we know we are doing trauma work. It’s a bit of a heavy read, but contains so much useful information! We certainly go over education in session.
3. Tools and skills. I like to make sure my client has a solid base of skills before we start into the heavy stuff (if possible). It can also be learned along side the actual trauma processing. I teach clients to soothe themselves, track why a response could be happening, tolerate painful emotions, change their relatinoships to their emotions, and discern when to feel an emotion vs setting it aside for later. I like mindfulness, relaxation, and help clients come up with other concrete ideas for good self care.
4. Trauma processing. This can look a lot of different ways, but essentially this is about releasing emotions and stress responses from experiences that have not had a chance to be processed, understanding the impact it had on us, and seeing that it doesn’t have to be that way in the present. Sometimes this can happen through talking about the event, feeling those emotions connected to it and having a new experience with a safe person (the therapist). Sometimes, this isn’t quite enough, and I will often use a blend of talk therapy and other approaches to get us where we need to go. I incorportate mindfulness, guided imagery, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and sometimes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).
5. Markers of progress. Unfortunately, I have no good time frame on how long it will take to get through the process of healing trauma, as it totally depends on the person! But there are a few things I look for as guideposts that we are making progess and headed in the right direction, such as: 1) trauma responses occurring with less frequency, intensity, and lasting less time (they normally start happening more frequently in the beginning) 2) increased pleasant emotions 3) better understanding of your own responses 4) more confidence 5) better ability to manage trauma responses on your own 6) better experiencing and expressing yourself to other people.

As always, if you have questions or would like to see if we are good fit, please contact me!