SPECIALIZED WOMEN'S OSR PROGRAM
Women have a unique experience in the workplace, and particularly in military and police settings where they are a distinct minority. Combat and policing trauma is common in women; five out of ten women experience a traumatic event, and four out of ten women experience Sexual Trauma/Military Sexual Trauma (MST). Women tend to experience different traumas than men.
Many women experiencing an operational stress injury will be more comfortable participating in a small group if it is a same gender group. The women in this program will have a unique opportunity to share, learn and be understood by other women who likely have had similar experiences. This connection will be a powerful aspect of recovery and will reduce the social isolation of women suffering from an operational stress injury such as depression or PTSD. The support networks established may well last long after the program is over and may be a source of ongoing support and encouragement.
The program is based on the 4-week PTSD Program with additional programming on Sexual Trauma and will be planned and conducted by Dr. Tina Rochford, HeartMath Trainers Dirk Terpstra and Laura Hartell and all female therapists. As our senior HeartMath Trainer and Internationally recognized speaker who has been with our program since its inception, Dirk works along with a female HeartMath trainer in our Women's Programs. Dirk is a kind and compassionate man who is well aware of the issues women face, and has been a beneficial part of our Women's Programs.
Treating Military Sexual Trauma
The Effects of Sexual Trauma are Feelings of:
Areas to be Addressed:
Women have a unique experience in the workplace, and particularly in military and police settings where they are a distinct minority. Combat and policing trauma is common in women; five out of ten women experience a traumatic event, and four out of ten women experience Sexual Trauma/Military Sexual Trauma (MST). Women tend to experience different traumas than men.
Many women experiencing an operational stress injury will be more comfortable participating in a small group if it is a same gender group. The women in this program will have a unique opportunity to share, learn and be understood by other women who likely have had similar experiences. This connection will be a powerful aspect of recovery and will reduce the social isolation of women suffering from an operational stress injury such as depression or PTSD. The support networks established may well last long after the program is over and may be a source of ongoing support and encouragement.
The program is based on the 4-week PTSD Program with additional programming on Sexual Trauma and will be planned and conducted by Dr. Tina Rochford, HeartMath Trainers Dirk Terpstra and Laura Hartell and all female therapists. As our senior HeartMath Trainer and Internationally recognized speaker who has been with our program since its inception, Dirk works along with a female HeartMath trainer in our Women's Programs. Dirk is a kind and compassionate man who is well aware of the issues women face, and has been a beneficial part of our Women's Programs.
Treating Military Sexual Trauma
The Effects of Sexual Trauma are Feelings of:
- Powerlessness – feeling powerless, having no voice in relationships, impotent rage
- Numbness – numbness during sex, inability to stay mentally present, disconnected from body
- Self Doubt – lack of good judgment about relationships personal and professional
- Mistrust – reluctance to trust, fear of intimacy (emotional, mental, physical)
- Betrayal – feeling betrayed by own body, by colleagues, by the organization
- Shame – about one’s own body, about being a woman, about being vulnerable
Areas to be Addressed:
- Sexism and Stigma (patriarchy, structural authority, power dynamics)
- Sexual Abuse on a Continuum (psychological, covert, overt)
- Redefining Self (self esteem, self identity, role identity)
- Relational Issues (trust, triggers, rage, isolation, shutting down, communication, security)
- Reconnection to Body (restore awareness of five senses, develop sense of internal safety)
- Reconnection to Healthy Sexuality (boundaries, sexual bill of rights, space, pleasure, safety)
