Trauma Narrative Worksheet
By
HappierTherapyAuthor bio
The Happier Therapy editorial team is made up of Masters and PhD counselling psychologists. Each worksheet is created by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The worksheet then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
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What is the theory behind this Trauma Narrative Worksheet?
Trauma narrative refers to the client’s expression of their traumatic experience. The complete trauma narrative takes several sessions to build as the client becomes more comfortable with sharing their story without feeling overwhelmed by painful emotions and memories. Younger clients find it easier to draw or play out their stories while older clients may find it easier to write it down. Either way, trauma narrative is a crucial part of trauma therapy as it also acts as an exposure to trauma memories as opposed to avoiding them.
How will the worksheet help?
This worksheet can help clients write about their traumatic experience. It can help them organise their thoughts and memories related to the event by prompting them to look at the event from both a factual and emotional perspective. Once it’s on paper, the client can feel more in control of their narrative and begin viewing it as an uncontrollable past that should not influence their future.
How to use the worksheet?
This worksheet can be used in trauma focused therapy when the client seems ready to be able to put their experience to paper without feeling overwhelmed by negative emotions. Instruct them to recall their traumatic experience and write about it according to steps provided in the worksheet.
