Trauma & Dissociation

Overview

The Trauma & Dissociation Assessment Service at CFIR offers comprehensive psychological evaluations of symptoms associated with traumatic experiences for the purpose of providing or clarifying diagnoses including Acute Stress, Adjustment, Post-Traumatic Stress, complex PTSD or Dissociative Disorders, and making treatment recommendations to address your concerns and struggles.

What type of assessments do we offer?

The Service offers comprehensive psychological evaluations of your mental wellbeing in the aftermath of traumatic life experiences. We utilize clinical interviews and employ rigorous scientific, evidence-based questionnaires to help you understand the nature of your psychological and relationship difficulties in the aftermath of past and current stressful, painful and/or life-threatening experiences.

How do I know if I, or a loved one, need a trauma & dissociation assessment?

Do any of the following items apply to you or a loved one?

  • Have you had or witnessed unwanted, overwhelming or disturbing sexual experiences, emotional or physical abuse, accidents or war experiences?
  • Do you have intrusive and painful thoughts or feelings about past events?
  • Do you have nightmares related to specific memories or events?
  • Do you have sleep difficulties?
  • Do you often feel fearful and unsafe?
  • Are you jumpy or easily startled?
  • Do you have difficulties with concentration?
  • Have you lost a sense of trust in the world, or do you have difficulty finding meaning or a sense of control and predictability?
  • Do you feel detached or numb in response to past or current experiences?
  • Do you become flooded by memories and emotions related to past trauma or abuse?
  • Are there intense physical reactions when you are reminded of certain incidents (e.g., pounding heart, rapid breathing, nausea, muscle tension, sweating)?
  • Do you ever feel like you are re-living a painful experience in the present moment?
  • Do you avoid people, places or situations that remind you of a past event or trigger painful emotions?
  • Do you have trouble separating the past from the present?
  • Are you weighed down by feelings of guilt or shame related to traumatic events that have happened to you in the past?
  • Do you currently feel mistrust towards others?
  • Do you find it difficult to be emotionally or physically close to people?
  • Do you use alcohol or other substances to cope with painful emotions?
  • Do you feel disconnected from your body?
  • Do you have an extreme loss of sexual desire, or overly heightened sexual arousal and desire?
  • Do you lose track of time, feel out of touch with what is around you or find yourself disconnected and ungrounded?
  • Do you have aches and pains?

Help Is Available

If you said yes to any of the above, you or your loved one might consider meeting with one of the highly trained mental health professionals in the Trauma & Dissociation Assessment Service at CFIR. Mental health professionals in this Service can provide you with a comprehensive assessment to help you understand the current nature of your difficulties in the aftermath of stressful and traumatic life experiences.

Mental health professionals at CFIR can provide you with a comprehensive assessment and then support you to get the help you need.

How can I get a referral to the Trauma & Dissociation Assessment Service? Who can refer to this Service?

You can refer yourself or a loved one to our service to assess whether a stressful or traumatic life experience has affected your wellbeing.

Health care professionals, including physicians, psychiatrists, social workers, psychotherapists and psychologists may also refer patients for the purpose of identifying or clarifying diagnoses related to traumatic stress or dissociative disorders.

What is involved in a trauma & dissociation assessment? How long will the assessment take?

Typically, your clinical psychologist will meet with you for an initial session to understand your concerns and struggles in the aftermath of stressful and traumatic life experiences. He or she will complete an evidence-based clinical interview and administer scientifically validated questionnaires for the purpose of understanding the nature of your psychological difficulties resulting from exposure to significant stress and traumatic experiences. Your clinical psychologist will then meet with you one more time to ask you additional questions about your experiences, and then provide you with a diagnosis that is most relevant to the symptoms and experiences that you have described.

The entire assessment process, which includes an initial session, clinical interviews and administration of scientific, evidence-based questionnaires, assessment feedback, and a report with recommendations (if needed) will take approximately four weeks to complete. Please consult with your clinical psychologist to determine the length of time required to complete your particular assessment.

What type of report or recommendations might I expect?

Following a rigorous assessment and feedback process, your clinical psychologist will provide recommendations for the treatment of your stress-related, trauma or dissociative disorder. He or she will ensure that you are provided referrals to clinicians who have extensive experience and are competent to provide evidence-based treatments for your condition.

Find A Therapist

We have many mental health therapists at each of our locations who offer this service. Please select a location below to see a list: