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Holistic Trauma Treatment for Sexual Abuse

Trauma can take many forms, and one of the most personally devastating experiences you can encounter is when your sexual boundaries are violated. It would be wonderful if sexual abuse never happened. Sadly, experiences like assault, rape, molestation and sexual harassment are far too common. It may be difficult to talk about sexual abuse, but it’s important. Confronting your experience with a compassionate professional can bring understanding — and with understanding can come healing. 

If you need help with trauma stemming from sexual abuse in any form, please know you are not alone. The Sanctuary at Sedona understands each person’s healing journey is unique, and we want to partner with you. Our holistic, integrative trauma treatment is personalized to your needs. It helps you process what you survived and transform your wounds into sources of strength. The Sanctuary at Sedona is a 30-Day minimum, residential, alternative, holistic sexual abuse treatment center.

Integrative Holistic Trauma Treatment for Sexual Abuse


Sexual abuse happens far more often than many people realize. Whether or not others would consider it a severe incident, most people have some kind of issue around their sexuality. This can result from non-consensual encounters, growing up in a home where sexuality is shamed, or internalizing cultural beliefs about our bodies and behaviors. Sexually based trauma majorly impacts how we see ourselves, other people, and the world around us.

At The Sanctuary, we understand from years of experience in treating addiction and mental health disorders that sexual trauma is often at the root of unwanted patterns. Unfortunately, the taboo that still surrounds this topic means that most people don’t talk about it, and it’s often buried deep in the shadows. We’re here to change that.

We recognize that a conscious relationship with your sexuality is essential to a happy, healthy life. That’s why we address this as a key component of our holistic treatment program. If you’re struggling with the trauma of sexual abuse, we can help by:

  • Creating a safe environment for you to heal
  • Examining beliefs you’ve built around your trauma
  • Empowering you to come back into your body
  • Restoring your connection with your spirit and life force

Kelley Alexander JD. Program Director of The Sanctuary at Sedona discusses Treating Trauma for Sexual Abuse Holistically in a Safe Environment.

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Table of Contents:

I Have Had This Trauma for a Long Time. Can I Still Heal? | Our Approach to Healing Sexual Abuse Trauma | How Is Sexual Trauma Treated in This Program? | The Long-Reaching Impact of Sexual Abuse

I Have Had This Trauma for a Long Time. Can I Still Heal?

Your longest-term relationship is with yourself, and you always have an opportunity to make it better. In fact, new scientific advances prove that we can heal to a greater extent than previously believed. You are completely capable of creating and strengthening new neural pathways that don’t include trauma and weakening the ones that do. Our holistic trauma treatment for sexual abuse helps you achieve this via uniquely effective therapies like:

  • An in-depth nutrition program and brain-boosting diet
  • Daily meditation practice
  • Personalized psychotherapy sessions
  • Energy healing
  • Heartmath

You’ll also receive education on the science behind it all, so you can add this understanding to your own knowledge toolkit.

Our Approach to Healing Sexual Abuse Trauma

We understand the shame and stigma surrounding sexual violence, and we want to help you shed that weight. At The Sanctuary, we will help you embrace important truths that can let you gain freedom from sexual abuse. It’s not your fault that this happened to you. You did not provoke this harm. You are powerful. You can heal.

Our holistic approach to healing trauma doesn’t just entail rehashing old stories in talk therapy. You may experience memories in the process of releasing stored trauma, but our goal is to help you shed those narratives that are no longer serving you. In this way, you empower yourself to move beyond your limitations and achieve a level of healing you may have never thought possible.

Trauma isn’t just in the mind. It’s stored in your physical body, your energetic body, and your soul. At The Sanctuary, we work with all of these aspects, so that you can start to grow your own sense of personal safety. And once you have that in place, you’re free to connect with yourself and live your life to the fullest.

As one former client says,

“The Sanctuary is a beautiful retreat that gets to the causes of your issues. You will learn so many things about yourself and how to cope.”

How Is Sexual Trauma Treated in This Program?

Sexual energy is the energy that creates all of life. As such, your connection to your own sexuality affects how you connect to life. How you engage with your own life force energy is crucial to your ability to be well and thrive. We support you in exploring this vital part of yourself and help you understand how you relate to it. You’ll have the opportunity to work with an experienced professional in this area to:

  • Create acceptance around a topic that often feels triggering or unsafe
  • Find gentle, safe ways to feel good in your body
  • Learn how to talk about boundaries

We understand these are sensitive matters, and we fully support both your “yes” and your “no” to different therapeutic options. You’re free to explore what works for you. And of course, your safety and comfort are always a priority.

Our clients say that having a place to talk about this often forbidden subject helps them find relief and feel more positive about sex and relationships overall. They also come to realize that while it feels very personal, it’s also universal — everybody has this very human experience.

Once you’ve established your inner safety, it’s possible to get past your trauma and into your vision of an empowered future.

How to Get the Most Out of Trauma Recovery

All treatment at The Sanctuary requires is a willingness to show up and work on your own healing. In order to create lifelong change, our program focuses on changing patterns — and that’s often easier said than done. At certain points in the program, you may encounter some resistance. All you have to do is keep an open mind, and remember that this too is part of the journey.

While healing isn’t always a linear process, with your presence and commitment, it will all come together. You can also increase your chances of success by continuing your progress after you return home. And we equip you with all the tools you need to do so.

How to Enjoy the Long-Term Benefits of Recovery Treatment

At The Sanctuary, our support doesn’t end when you leave our grounds. While you’re still in treatment, you’ll begin to work on a transition plan packet. We help you get a plan for your continued care in place before you leave. This can range from finding a therapist to continuing practices you connected with during your stay.

After completing 30 days of residential treatment, you’ll receive an additional 60 days of highly supportive continuing care. This consists of:

  • One individual call per week, for eight weeks
  • One group coaching call per week, for eight weeks
  • An alumni call each week, available indefinitely
  • Continued contact with members of the Sanctuary team and program peers
  • Connection with additional resources in your area

We know that the work you do in treatment is crucial, and we’ll work with you to protect and prolong all the changes you’ve made. You’ll leave with a changed perspective, and the ability to go about your life and relationships in a whole new way.

The Long-Reaching Impact of Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse is never just about sex. Instead, it’s an attempt to gain power over others. Just a single incident of assault, rape, intimate partner violence, incest or sexual harassment can have numerous, long-reaching consequences. When left untreated, the impact of sexual abuse can last a lifetime, affecting a victim’s physical, mental, emotional and social health. The insidious nature of sexual abuse also means the people closest to you are impacted as well.

Here are just a few of the potential problems that can stem from sexual abuse. These are also issues we can help you confront during your stay at The Sanctuary.

Anxiety Disorder

Survivors of sexual abuse are more likely to suffer from a variety of anxiety disorders, including agoraphobia: fear of open spaces. They might also develop disproportionate fear reactions to things and situations that trigger memories of the event, like people whose physical appearance is similar to that of the abuser.

Depression

Most people feel deeply saddened after experiencing sexual abuse. But sometimes, these feelings persist and develop into a chronic state characterized by numbness, hopelessness about the future and a general disinterest in life. Depending on the severity, this can even lead to self-harm and suicidal behavior.

Intimacy Disorders

When we’re sexually abused, it teaches us not to trust. Survivors of sexual abuse are often wary of others and find it very difficult to let their guard down even in situations that are safe. Because sexual and emotional intimacy requires us to be vulnerable in order to have connected, satisfying experiences, this emotional state can severely interfere with our ability to form and sustain healthy bonds with others.

Addiction

Drugs, alcohol, sex, and compulsive eating too often become go-to escapes for those wanting to avoid emotional pain, and survivors of sexual abuse are no exception. Trauma dramatically throws off your limbic system, the parts of your brain that regulate your fear response. As a result, sexual assault survivors may feel they’re always on edge — and substances are an easily available way to temporarily self-soothe. 

While this is a coping mechanism, it is an unhealthy one and one that quickly ramps up into dependence and addiction, compounding issues and making matters far worse.

Call Us to Start on Your Path to Healing Today

You, too, can reconnect with yourself and experience all the joy that life has to offer.

The entire Sanctuary team is dedicated to your success, and you’ll feel that from the moment you walk through the doors of our sexual abuse trauma recovery center. Feel what it’s like to restore a sense of love, connection, belonging, and peace to your life. Our relationship begins with a simple call to set things in motion. Contact us online today or give us a call at (866) 750-0763 to learn how.

 

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