Complex trauma, dissociation, and the use of symbolism in therapy

As therapists are confronted with clients who have childhood histories of severe interpersonal trauma, the challenge is to understand how this trauma affects individuals developmentally and how healing might be facilitated. This article explores how integration might be understood in the context of complex posttraumatic stress disorder. It is proposed that the symbolic function is central both to the fracturing of selfhood due to early trauma and to its resolution. The article provides a detailed discussion of symbolism and therapeutic possibilities for the use of symbolism as an adjunct to therapy with sufferers of complex posttraumatic stress disorder. It is argued that symbols provide a potentially powerful means of assisting reintegration and that this can be used within a range of therapeutic traditions, including cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, psychopharmacological, and neurophysiological approaches. The work of the first author in this regard is illustrated by means of a case study.