A new Trauma Recovery Group for survivors of childhood trauma will begin June 6 – August 8, 2024 at the Archdiocese of Atlanta Chancery Offices in Smyrna. Registration deadline is May 16, 2024. The group is limited to 10 participants.

Please contact Sue Stubbs at 404-920-7554 or sstubbs@archatl.com for more information.

Have you recently undergone a life altering event*?
Are you a survivor of a traumatic childhood**?
Are you currently experiencing most of the following?

Fear and anxiety · Irritability or anger · Emotionally numb · Lack of focus · Overwhelming sadness · Easily startled or frightened · Changes in sleeping or eating habits · Bouts of crying that come easily · Recurrent nightmares or thoughts about the trauma.

AoA_TRG_02

If you answer yes to any of these questions, then the Trauma Recovery Group may be of help to you…

The goal of the Trauma Recovery Group is to help you improve your day-to-day functioning. This group focuses on helping you to live effectively in the present, not on the recovery of repressed memories.  The group will help you to stabilize by identifying conflicts and unlearning specific distortions related to the effects of the trauma you have experienced and replace them with new tools learned in the group setting.

This group is based on Dr. Colin Ross’s Trauma Model, an internationally recognized and research-based model for effective therapy with survivors of trauma.  Through this group experience you will move toward the ultimate healing of interpersonal forgiveness and grief.

* Examples of Life Altering Events:

  • Death of a child, parent, sibling, spouse
  • Diagnosis of chronic or terminal illness
  • Car or airplane crash
  • Victim or witness of a violent crime

** Examples of Trauma during Childhood:

  • Sexual, physical, verbal, emotional abuse and/or neglect
  • Death of a parent, sibling, or caretaker
  • Chronic illness (self or parent)
  • Mental illness of parent, sibling or caretaker
  • Victim or witness of violent crime

The Group

The Recovery Group is limited to 10 male and female participants.  It is led by two professional counselors experienced in working with survivors of trauma and well-formed in the Truth of the Catholic faith.  All Truth is God’s Truth.  If you are not Catholic yourself, the tools you will learn in this group will help you to move you forward in Truth on your journey to peace.

There is an initial session one-on-one with one of the group leaders to assess if the group is right for at this time in your recovery.  There are 9 group sessions which last two hours each with a break in the middle. Each session follows this basic format:

  • Prayer
  • Review of prior session
  • Review of homework from the previous week
  • Break
  • Introduction of new session
  • Review of homework for the week
  • Prayer

The sessions do not focus on participants stories of trauma but at times participants may refer to a specific aspect or recollection of their trauma in relation to the topic/tools we are focusing on in the session that week.

For more information or if you have any questions:

Sue Stubbs MS, NCC
Director, Victim Assistance Program
404-920-7554
sstubbs@archatl.com

Other Programs

Session Topics

SESSION ONE
  • Overview of Content
  • Grounding
SESSION TWO
  • Ambivalent Attachment
SESSION THREE
  • Avoiding Feelings
SESSION FOUR Feeling Feelings While Keeping Safe (I)

  • Correcting Cognitive Distortions
  • Integrating Feelings
SESSION FIVE Feeling Feelings While Keeping Safe (II)

  • Calming the Body’s Stress Response
  • Gradual Exposure to Triggers
SESSION SIX
  • Locus of Control Shift
SESSION SEVEN
  • Victim / Rescuer / Perpetrator Triangle
SESSION EIGHT
  • Forgiveness
  • Sacrament of Healing (encouraged but not required)
SESSION NINE
  • Grief
  • Closing

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