Grace Tworek is a clinical psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic who is passionate about helping people who have autoimmune disorders. She describes medical trauma symptoms, and suggests how people who suspect they have trauma can find a mental health specialist.

Medical trauma is a response that occurs to a negative or a traumatic event that occurs within a medical setting.

So symptoms can vary but may include changes in mood, fear surrounding attending medical appointments or going into a particular medical setting, avoidance of talking about specific symptoms or medical status, feeling on edge, anxious, or feeling like you need to look over your shoulder.

This is of course not an exhaustive list and symptoms can vary, but these are some ways that we can identify medical trauma.

And if you or someone you’ve loved has experienced medical trauma, some of the first steps can include establishing psychotherapy services with a professional trained in trauma-informed therapy that you feel really comfortable talking to. And it’s really important that you feel comfortable talking to that person and that I differentiate that, because it’s OK if you meet with more than one therapist until you find the therapist that is correct or right for you, feels like a good fit for you.

Trauma-informed therapy can be sought out and established in a few different ways.

The first is if you do have a medical provider you really trust, asking them for referrals, they may work with a provider.

Calling the back of your insurance card is another great way to have an exhaustive list of providers in your area that you have access to, or websites like Psychology Today that allow you to filter based on your location, preferences and even topics such as medical trauma. You can filter on that website, find a list, scroll through, look at the different therapists available, and find ways to contact them.