Individual Therapy
Specialties
Some of the issues Dr. Gilson can assist you with include:
Dissociation
Dissociation is a common coping tool all people use at times. However, when we have to use it to cope for long periods of time it can become easily triggered in situations in which it is not helpful, and cause confusion and frustration in your life.
If you have noticed that you are “losing time” and cannot recall what you were doing, have been told by others that you act like a different person at different times, have difficulty with memory and concentration, or feel like there are multiple parts of your self, you may be experiencing dissociation.
PTSD
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a natural response to extreme and distressing events.
Are you bothered by the experience of a traumatic or distressing event?
In the past month, have you…
- Had nightmares about the event(s) or thought about the event(s) when you did not want to?
YES / NO - Tried hard not to think about the event(s) or went out of your way to avoid situations that reminded you of the event(s)?
YES / NO - Been constantly on guard, watchful, or easily startled?
YES / NO - Felt numb or detached from people, activities, or your surroundings?
YES / NO - Felt guilty or unable to stop blaming yourself or others for the event(s) or any problems the event(s) may have caused?
YES / NO
If you have answered yes to three or more of these questions, you may be experiencing post-traumatic stress.
Complex PTSD
Complex PTSD (sometimes shown as cPTSD) is a condition in which you experience some symptoms of PTSD as well as:
- Difficulty controlling your emotions (feeling like you’re on an emotional roller coaster)
- changes in consciousness, such as forgetting traumatic experiences, feeling detached from reality or unreal
- relationships that are intense and unstable
- Difficulty trusting yourself and others
- Feeling unsafe all the time
- Isolating or withdrawing from others
- a loss of faith, hope, or sense of a future
Complex PTSD is commonly experienced by people who have experienced multiple traumatic life events over a longer period of time than people with non-complex PTSD. It can be seen in survivors of chronic childhood abuse, domestic violence, terrorism, or other repeating distressing events.
Psychogenic Non-Epileptic Seizures (PNES)
PNES are sudden, involuntary, and typically short changes in behavior, movement, sensation, or consciousness. This is reflex-like response to distress the brain has detected. While many people who have PNES have experienced traumatic life events, it may also be related to learned patterns of behavior or an effort on our mind’s behalf to avoid distressing information coming to our attention.
These experiences can be extremely distressing to the person who is experiencing them as well as observers.
However, treatment can help you better understand your triggers, reduce the frequency and intensity of your episodes, and address the issues you may be avoiding that have triggered these events, and help you regain control of your responses to distressing information or experiences.
Military Sexual Trauma (MST)
Military sexual trauma is defined as any sexual trauma experienced while a member of the military, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, and chronic sexual harassment.
If you’ve experienced MST, your reaction may be different than someone who had similar experiences in the civilian world.
Military culture, norms, and UCMJ regulations can play a significant role in how military members react to these life events. And while these sorts of traumas are commonly experienced by both men and women, they are rarely discussed, and little support can be available to address their symptoms.
As a former MST Coordinator at a VAMC, Dr. Gilson has worked with hundreds of MST survivors and helped them better understand and work through their experiences.
Operational Stress Injury (First Responders)
Operational Stress Injury (OSI) is defined as any mental health concern that is experienced as a result of your exposure to distressing events in your work. This may include a single traumatic event or the accumulated injury due to multiple distressing events over months and years of work.
This is commonly experienced by first responders such as:
- Law Enforcement Officers
- Firefighters
- Dispatch Officers
- Negotiators
- Federal Police
- EMT
- Rescue Divers
- Nurses and Doctors
While many associate PTSD with these injuries, people may also experience:
- substance abuse issues
- depression
- panic attacks
- relationship problems
- insomnia
- irritable bowel syndrome
With experience in working with hundreds of first responders, Dr. Gilson can help you work through your traumatic work experiences and experience relief from your symptoms.
Trauma-Focused Treatment
There are a number of evidence-based treatments for trauma-related issues. Together we will determine which might be the best fit for you. Research shows that treatments of trauma memory are highly effective (80% responses with full effort). And if one treatment doesn’t work for you, there are others we can try to help you see the results you deserve. My training allows me to use a number of different techniques alone or in combination to find an approach that will work for you. Some of the evidence-based techniques I have been trained in include:
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Hypnosis
Adaptive Disclosure
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
Mindfulness
Written Exposure Therapy (WET)
Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET)
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
Prolonged Exposure (PE)
Ego State Therapy
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