Therapy for Trauma, PTSD & Emotional Healing in Chicago
Therapy that understands context.
Your experiences don’t exist in a vacuum.
Culture, identity, family systems, and lived experiences all shape how you think, feel, and respond to stress.
When we experience trauma, the mind and body instinctively respond in ways designed to protect us and help us survive. These protective responses can look different for every person.
Acute & Complex Trauma
At Dr. Solis Therapy & Consulting, we believe trauma is not defined only by what happened to you…
Trauma can emerge from a single overwhelming event, as well as from ongoing experiences of emotional pain, chronic stress, attachment wounds, neglect, discrimination, or dehumanization that accumulate over time.
Complex trauma often develops through repeated experiences that disrupt safety, trust, identity, connection, or belonging.
You may find yourself feeling emotionally overwhelmed, disconnected, hypervigilant, numb, anxious, or constantly “on.”
Our Approach to Complex Trauma
Our approach to therapy is compassionate, culturally responsive, and trauma-informed. We create a safe, supportive space to help you process difficult experiences, rebuild a sense of safety and self-trust, and move toward healing, resilience, and reconnection with yourself and others.
* Trauma-Informed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)
* Parts Work (IFS-informed)
* Brainspotting & Mindfulness-based strategies
* Exposure-based work when appropriate at a safe pace
Trauma Concerns Our Therapists Commonly Treat
Interpersonal & Relational Trauma
Developmental & Generational Trauma
Religious Trauma
Complex Trauma
Natural Disaster & Global Event Trauma
Sexual Trauma
How Unresolved Trauma Can Affect Wellbeing
Trauma can trigger automatic emotional, physical, and psychological responses that are intended to help us survive threatening or overwhelming experiences. These responses are deeply personal and each individual’s response is unique to their experiences and environment.
Acute Trauma Symptoms
- Sleep disturbance
- Intrusive thoughts, nightmares & flashbacks
- Reckless behavior including self-harm
- Anger, irritability & hypervigilance
- Deeply painful depression or anxiety
- Difficulty trusting others or feeling safe in relationships
- Avoidance of people, places, situations that serve as reminders of traumatic event(s)
Complex & Chronic Trauma Symptoms
- May show up similarly to acute
- Relationship issues- either chaotic or disconnected
- Difficulty regulating emotions
- Persistent feelings of guilt or shame
- Poor impulse control
- Social Isolation
- Loss of time or reality
- Feeling disconnected from self
What Trauma Therapy Can Help You With
Trauma therapy can support healing from acute trauma, complex trauma, PTSD, chronic stress, attachment wounds, anxiety, burnout, and emotionally overwhelming experiences. Therapy may include:
- Increasing awareness of how trauma affects the brain, body, nervous system, emotions, and relationships
- Identifying how unresolved trauma may contribute to anxiety, hypervigilance, emotional overwhelm, people-pleasing, perfectionism, burnout, or disconnection
- Processing attachment injuries, painful life experiences, and core beliefs shaped by trauma
- Learning grounding tools, coping skills, and nervous system regulation strategies to manage stress and emotional distress
- Practicing healthy boundaries to create greater emotional safety, stability, and self-trust
- Reconnecting with your sense of identity, safety, empowerment, and wellbeing
FAQs
What is trauma therapy?
Trauma therapy is a specialized, trauma-informed approach to counseling that helps individuals process and heal from overwhelming, distressing, or life-altering experiences. Trauma therapy supports people who may be struggling with the effects of acute trauma, complex trauma, PTSD, childhood trauma, attachment wounds, chronic stress, anxiety, burnout, or emotionally painful experiences that continue to impact daily life.
What is PTSD therapy?
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) therapy is a specialized form of trauma-informed mental health treatment designed to help individuals heal from the emotional, psychological, and physical effects of traumatic experiences. PTSD, can develop after experiencing or witnessing overwhelming events such as abuse, violence, accidents, medical trauma, loss, military combat, relationship trauma, childhood trauma, or other deeply distressing experiences.
Is trauma therapy intense or overwhelming?
Trauma therapy can sometimes feel emotionally challenging, especially when discussing painful experiences or long-held survival patterns. However, trauma-informed therapy is designed to move at a pace that feels safe, supportive, and manageable for each individual. Effective trauma therapy is about building safety, trust, emotional awareness, and coping skills while gently processing experiences over time.
Do you offer trauma therapy in Chicago and Illinois?
Yes. At Dr. Solis Therapy & Consulting, we provide trauma-informed therapy services for adults in Chicago and throughout Illinois through both in-person and virtual therapy options.
Anxiety, Depression & Trauma Therapy in Chicago | Dr. Solis Therapy & Consulting 