PTSD therapy and healing
Key takeaways
- PTSD can leave you stuck in fight-or-flight, but the right care can make you feel more like yourself again
- Experts at Montage Health offer trauma-informed PTSD treatment in Monterey County, with advanced therapies and support for co-occurring conditions
- If you’re unsure whether you’re dealing with PTSD or another condition, we can help clarify your diagnosis through a professional evaluation
Summary
PTSD can make it hard to relax, sleep, or feel steady, even when you’re doing your best to move forward after trauma. Our experts listen to your story and help you start PTSD treatment in a way that feels supportive and doable.
After experiencing trauma, you may feel pressure to “get over it” and feel settled again. But post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) doesn’t work that way. It can show up as nightmares, intrusive memories, irritability, anxiety, or numbness, even when you want to move forward.
If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not broken. Your mind and body learned how to survive, and now they’re having trouble turning the alarm system off. At Montage Health, our experts provide gentle care to help you make sense of what’s happening and feel safer in your body again.
What does PTSD look like?
Many people describe PTSD as feeling stuck in fight or flight. Your body continues to release high levels of stress hormones, which makes it hard to fully relax, even in safe places. You might notice:
- Avoidance of reminders of what happened
- Emotional numbness of detachment
- Hypervigilance (always scanning for threats or danger)
- Intrusive memories, nightmares, or flashbacks
- Irritability
- Physical signs, such as tension, headaches, stomach issues, or a racing heart
- Trouble concentrating
Long-term symptoms of untreated PTSD
PTSD can get better with the right support, but if you’ve been managing it alone for a long time, the symptoms can start to settle into everyday life. They may lead to:
How many types of PTSD are there?
Clinically, PTSD is one diagnosis. But providers recognize different situations to help guide care. For some people, PTSD is tied to a single traumatic event. For others, it’s more complex and linked to long-term trauma, especially in childhood or relationships.
You may hear related terms like acute stress disorder, which is a trauma response that occurs within the first month after an event. If symptoms last longer than four weeks, they can develop into PTSD.
Do I have PTSD or bipolar disorder?
PTSD and bipolar disorder can look similar on the surface. The main difference is that PTSD is tied to trauma. Bipolar disorder, on the other hand, involves distinct mood episodes with periods of depression and mania or hypomania. During these episodes, you experience intense shifts in energy, sleep patterns, actions, and thought processes.
Sometimes, PTSD appears with bipolar disorder. That’s why getting a professional mental health evaluation can be such a relief. Our experts clarify your diagnosis, so treatment targets the root cause of your symptoms.
What can I expect from PTSD treatment?
Our team will talk with you openly and build a PTSD treatment plan around your needs and goals. We won’t rush you into anything before you’re ready. You’ll always be in control of the pace. Your plan may include:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy to understand how trauma shapes thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors — and build coping tools
- Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), structured therapies that help your brain reprocess traumatic memories so they feel less intense and less triggering
- Skills-based therapies, including stress-management techniques
- Medication, when appropriate, to ease symptoms
- Care for co-occurring conditions, such as depression, anxiety, and substance use
- Lifestyle support for sleep, movement, nutrition, and daily routines
PTSD inpatient treatment
Sometimes, PTSD symptoms can feel unbearable. In these situations, inpatient treatment may be the safest option. You may need a higher level of care if you’re not safe or unable to function properly.
At Montage Health, inpatient care is available at Garden Pavilion, located within Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. We offer 24-hour mental health care for adults in crisis. You’ll receive close monitoring and support to regain stability. As you improve, your next step may be a partial hospitalization program (PHP) or intensive outpatient program (IOP) for more structured support.
If you or someone you love is in crisis, call 911 or go to the nearest Emergency department immediately.
Treatment goals for PTSD
Our team will help you set goals that feel practical and personal to your life — and we’ll adjust them with you as you heal. Treatment can help you:
- Feel less reactive to triggers
- Handle stress in healthier ways
- Improve relationships, trust, and communication
- Manage big emotions without shutting down
- Reduce nightmares, flashbacks, and intrusive memories
- Sleep better
- Start doing things you’ve been avoiding
People also ask
How is PTSD treated in veterans?
Military trauma can be complicated. It might involve combat, training accidents, grief, moral injury, or years of high stress. Our team makes sure your treatment plan reflects the full context of your experiences.
Can PTSD start months or years after a traumatic event?
Yes. Some people notice symptoms right away, but others feel OK at first and develop PTSD later. Delayed symptoms can show up when stress builds, or something reminds you of what happened.
What if I’m afraid therapy will make me relive everything?
This fear is common. Our experts are trained in trauma-informed care, so we won’t pressure you to tell your whole story right away. You’ll stay in control of what you share and when.
