ROCK SPRINGS – Southwest Counseling Service is inviting adults affected by trauma to experience the healing power of group therapy by attending an intensive three-day retreat in Rock Springs with no out-of-pocket costs. There will be several general trauma-healing retreats offered as well as focused healing groups for the following populations:

1. Veterans
2. Parents who have lost adult children.
3. Couples struggling with the effects of trauma (limit of three couples)
4. Parents with traumatized children. 

Trauma is the response to a disturbing or distressing experience that can have both short-term and long-term effects on all aspects of one’s life: social, emotional, physical, and mental. The causes of trauma are many and can include accidents as children, surgery, car crashes, abandonment, abuse, unexpected deaths or other losses in addition to more traditionally recognized trauma stemming from combat or rape. The effects of trauma can cause life-long struggles with depression, anxiety, substance use and many other behaviors that may not appear to be related. Help and healing possibilities are available through these retreats. 

 “These free retreats are a great way to kick-start someone’s trauma healing journey. Often, we think, or are told to ‘just let things go; that was in the past.’ That’s not how the brain and body work with trauma. For those who are still living with horrendous depression or anxiety, they may be experiencing the delayed effects of trauma, and we don’t just simply move past them without addressing the issues. Addressing the issues is when we can make peace with what happened and start living again,” Patricia Swan-Smith, a licensed professional counselor said. 

Most of the retreats will be separated into men and women’s groups with the exception of the parents who experienced the death of an adult child and the couples’ groups. All groups provide information from Steven Porges’ Polyvagal Theory to help individuals understand fight, flight, and freeze responses. Information from other trauma experts such as Gabor Mate, Bessell van der Kolk, Peter Levine and others help participants understand how trauma affects our development, thoughts, body, brain, emotions, and behaviors. The therapy will provide a healing and supportive environment for trauma survivors to comprehend and address trauma on individual, psychosocial, and physiological levels. 

On the individual level, attendees will start a new healing process and experience how addressing trauma can change their lives. Psychosocially, participants will learn how to recognize and replace the misperceptions that lead to judgment, shame, blame, and destructive behaviors. Physiologically, attendees will explore practices that can help them address and change the physiological responses when feeling unsafe – which for people living with trauma symptoms can be most of the time.

Swan-Smith facilitates the retreats. Residents interested in healing from trauma can call Southwest Counseling Service at 352-6677 to discuss registration for the retreats. Participants must be 18 years old or older to attend. 

Ten retreats are slated for this year. Specific dates will be set based on registration discussions with participants. There are between six and eight spots available per retreat and registration for them will be on a first come, first serve basis. The retreats will take place for three consecutive days: Either Tuesday-Thursday or Friday-Sunday. The first day runs from 1-6 p.m., the second day 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and the third day 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

These retreats are made possible through the Certified Community Behavioral Health Center grant awarded to Southwest Counseling Service by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Insurance will be billed, but participants will not pay any out-of-pocket costs.