Explore how the traumatic event has affected your beliefs about yourself, others, and the world.
Write freely about how the trauma has impacted different areas of your life. There are no right or wrong answers — this is about understanding the meaning the event holds for you.
Use early in treatment to identify and articulate the personal meaning the trauma has had on the client's view of themselves, others, and the world. Serves as a baseline document that can be revisited and updated as processing progresses.
Explain that trauma often changes how we see ourselves and the world, and that writing about this impact can be a first step in processing. Reassure the client that there are no right or wrong answers — this is about their experience.
For clients who find writing difficult, this can be completed verbally with the therapist scribing, or as an audio recording. For clients with alexithymia or emotional numbing, use prompts and scaling questions to support expression.
Avoid assigning as unsupported homework if the client has a history of significant dissociation or self-harm in response to trauma-related distress. Complete in session first to assess the client's capacity to engage with the material safely.
The impact statement reveals the client's key negative appraisals, which are direct targets for cognitive restructuring. Compare the initial statement with a revised version later in therapy to demonstrate therapeutic change and consolidate gains.
Suitable for clients working with trauma, ptsd, cognitive processing, stuck points, beliefs. This tool can be used as a standalone worksheet or as part of a structured homework plan.
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Practise and record the use of grounding techniques when experiencing flashbacks, dissociation, or overwhelming emotions.
Write a structured impact statement exploring how the trauma has affected your beliefs about safety, trust, power, esteem, and intimacy.
Prepare for a visit to the trauma site, record predictions, and process the experience afterwards to update the trauma memory.
Track PTSD symptoms across the four DSM-5 clusters — intrusion, avoidance, negative cognitions and mood, and arousal and reactivity — to monitor progress through treatment.