There are many different responses to crisis. Most survivors have intense feelings after a traumatic event but quickly recover; others have more difficulty — especially those who have had previous traumatic experiences, who are faced with ongoing stress, or who lack support from friends and family — and will need additional help. - Excerpted from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Answers to Common Questions about Counseling
Throughout life, there are times when help is needed to address problems and issues that cause emotional distress or make us feel overwhelmed. When experiencing these types of difficulties, individuals may benefit from the assistance of an experienced, trained professional. Learn more...
Self-Harm
"Self-harm" is the deliberate, direct destruction of the body that results in tissue damage. When someone engages in self-harm, they may have a variety of intentions. Learn more...
Self-Mutilation
Several definitions of self-mutilation exist. In fact, researchers and mental health professionals have not agreed upon one term to identify the behavior. Self-harm, self-injury, and self-mutilation are often used interchangeably. Learn more...
Complex Trauma in Children and Adolescents
The term complex trauma describes the dual problem of children's exposure to multiple traumatic events and the impact of this exposure on immediate and long-term outcomes. Typically, complex trauma exposure results when a child is abused or neglected, but it can also be caused by other kinds of events such as witnessing domestic violence, ethnic cleansing, or war. Learn more...
When Terrorists Strike: What School Counselors Can Do
The Adapted Family Debriefing Model for school students described in this article demonstrates promise for helping both student survivors of terrorism and their parents cope with negative psychological and social effects. Learn more...
Acute Stress Disorder
Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) is a psychiatric diagnosis and the current diagnostic criteria for ASD are similar to the criteria for PTSD. However, the criteria for ASD contain a greater emphasis on dissociative symptoms and the diagnosis can only be given within the first month after a traumatic event. Learn more...
What Is Child Traumatic Stress?
From a psychological perspective, trauma occurs when a child experiences an intense event that threatens or causes harm to his or her emotional and physical well-being. Learn more...
Domestic Violence Fact Sheet
Domestic violence, also called intimate partner violence (IVP), partner abuse, and spousal abuse, is a serious, preventable public health problem that affects millions of Americans. Learn more...
PTSD Fact Sheet
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can occur after you have been through a traumatic event. A traumatic event is something horrible and scary that you see, hear about, or that happens to you. During a traumatic event, you think that your life or others' lives are in danger. You may feel afraid or feel that you have no control over what is happening. Learn more...
Effects of Traumatic Experiences
People who go through traumatic experiences often have symptoms and problems afterward. How serious the symptoms and problems are depends on many things including a person's life experiences before the trauma, a person's own natural ability to cope with stress, how serious the trauma was, and what kind of help and support a person gets from family, friends, and professionals immediately following the trauma. Learn more...
Anger and Trauma
Researchers have described three components of posttraumatic anger that can become maladaptive or interfere with one's ability to adapt to current situations that do not involve extreme threat. Learn more...
Stalking Victimization
In general, stalking refers to repeated harassing or threatening behavior by an individual, such as following a person, appearing at a person's home or place of business, making harassing phone calls, leaving written messages or objects, or vandalizing a person's property. Learn more...