What Makes a Trauma-Informed Therapist?
Life’s challenges can be overwhelming; everyone deserves a space to feel heard and supported. At Roamers Therapy, we provide trauma-informed, culturally sensitive, LGBTQIA+ affirming, and evidence-based environments to help you heal, grow, and navigate your mental well-being journey. As your psychotherapist, we are here to guide you every step of the way.
Find the Best Therapist in Chicago for Trauma-Informed Care
The trauma-informed therapist maintains a number of core competencies that make it easier to work through trauma. Some of these competencies include:
- Knowledge of trauma
- Trustworthiness
- Safety
- Collaboration
- Autonomy
Knowledge of Trauma
Having knowledge of trauma is not just understanding that adversity exists or that people experience trauma. Having a knowledge of trauma is far more expansive than that. This can include an understanding in:
- The diversity of trauma and adverse experiences (e.g., physical, global, historic)
- Trauma experiences, symptoms, and manifestations The complexity of traumas
- The shame, privacy, or protection of traumas
- The ways traumas can be triggered
- Different techniques on how to treat trauma
- Different exercises on how to help people regulate
Trustworthiness
A trauma-informed therapist understands that traumas are often protected by clients and that it takes a while for clients to decide when they may be ready to share these personal experiences with another person. As such, therapists will strive to convey their trustworthiness to their clients by:
- Maintaining transparency with clients (e.g., limitations to treatment or experience, limitations to confidentiality)
- Keeping their word with clients (e.g., meeting with clients regularly and on time)
- Maintaining authenticity with clients (e.g., being themselves with clients)
- Remembering to follow up on certain action items (e.g., homework assignments)
Safety
Trauma-informed therapists understand the fragility of the therapeutic relationship. They understand that the safety of their clients is a priority. As such, the therapist may engage in various behaviors to protect the safety of their clients:
- Remaining mindful of their own reactions in session
- Remaining open to feedback from clients
- Providing clients a roadmap to therapy
- Avoiding secondary trauma (or retraumatization)
- Maintaining a warm, gentle, and non-judgmental approach
- Checking in with clients’ bandwidth
- Reading cues of distress, dysregulation, or discomfort
- Providing clients with grounding exercises
Collaboration
Trauma-informed therapists understand that the individual is the expert in the room and that every client differs in their readiness, ability, or desire to change. As such, the trauma-informed therapist will share decision-making regarding treatment with clients. This can include behaviors like:
- Soliciting feedback from clients
- Providing clients with options for treatment
- Brain-storming ways to manage symptoms (e.g., coping, self-care)
- Soliciting ideas for treatment from clients
- Developing treatment plans that align with the client’s goals
Autonomy
The trauma-informed therapist will understand the importance of autonomy or choice in therapy. When people experience trauma, they may feel as though their choice was taken from them. The trauma-informed therapist will work to empower them to reclaim a sense of autonomy. This is done through:
- Providing positive regard for the choices they make
- Supporting clients to develop a sense of confidence in their decision-making
- Giving clients a sense of choice
- Not forcing clients to make decisions
- Working with clients to understand the importance of their choice and autonomy
At Roamers Therapy, our psychotherapists are here to support you through anxiety, depression, trauma and relationship issues, race-ethnicity issues, LGBTQIA+ issues, ADHD, Autism, or any challenges you encounter. Our psychotherapists are trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Acceptance, and Commitment Therapy, Person-Centered Therapy, and Gottman Therapy.
Whether you’re seeking guidance on a specific issue or need help navigating difficult emotions, we’re ready to assist you every step of the way.
Contact us today to learn more about our services and schedule a session with our mental health professionals to begin your healing journey. To get started with therapy, visit our booking page.
First, decide if you’ll be paying out-of-pocket or using insurance. If you’re a self-pay client, you can book directly through the “Book Now” page or fill out the “Self-Pay/Out-of-network Inquiry Form.” If you’re using insurance, fill out the “Insurance Verification Form” to receive details about your costs and availability. Please let us know your preferred therapist. If your preferred therapist isn’t available, you can join the waitlist by emailing us. Once your appointment is confirmed, you’ll receive intake documents to complete before your first session.
This page is also part of the Roamers Therapy Glossary; a collection of mental-health related definitions that are written by our therapists.
While our offices are currently located at the South Loop neighborhood of Downtown Chicago, Illinois, we also welcome and serve clients for online therapy from anywhere in Illinois and Washington, D.C. Clients from the Chicagoland area may choose in-office or online therapy and usually commute from surrounding areas such as River North, West Loop, Gold Coast, Old Town, Lincoln Park, Lake View, Rogers Park, Logan Square, Pilsen, Bridgeport, Little Village, Bronzeville, South Shore, Hyde Park, Back of the Yards, Wicker Park, Bucktown and many more. You can visit our contact page to access detailed information on our office location.