Intimacy After Sexual Trauma

If you are a survivor of sexual trauma, you have likely felt its impact in your closest relationships. Experiences of powerlessness and violation leave enduring marks on our minds and bodies, making it difficult for us to get close, trust others, attune to our bodies’ messages, experience embodied sexual pleasure, and know/communicate our boundaries. Whether you are coming in as an individual or with your partner, the therapists at PCT are ready to help you have the connection with yourself and others that healing makes possible. We are trauma-informed professionals with experience helping individuals across backgrounds, experiences, and identities to find safety, delight, and intimacy in connection with others.

As psychiatrist, trauma researcher, and author Bessel van der Kolk writes, “Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives.” We are proud to be your safe harbor as you heal and work toward your goals.

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The Gray Space Between Us:Understanding Black-and-White Thinking in Human Relationships

In the human experience, it’s tempting to reduce life into binaries: good or bad, right or wrong, love or hate. These cognitive shortcuts, which you might call dichotomous thinking or black-and-white thinking, can appear to provide clarity. But they actually distort our reality and strain our relationships.

We love our partners yet feel deep frustration over their quirks or behaviors. We eagerly anticipate hosting the holidays but quietly dread the emotional labor involved. We adore our children, yet still feel bored, overwhelmed, exhausted, or even resentful of them.

This does not mean we’re broken. It means we’re human.

Intimacy After Sexual Trauma

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