PTSD Treatment in San Diego
At Del Rae Behavioral Health, PTSD treatment is about helping clients feel grounded, empowered, and supported—every step of the way.
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Clinically Reviewed by:
Clinical Director: Sean O’Neill, LMFT
Key Points About Our PTSD Treatment Options
- Integration of mind, body, and nervous system care
- Holistic services including yoga, sound healing, fitness outings, and sleep support
- Evidence-based therapy combined with experiential and wellness-focused practices
- Inclusive, co-ed programming with client-centered choice
- Relationship-driven care focused on safety, trust, and feeling heard
- Flexible daytime outpatient schedules
- Ongoing alumni and aftercare support for long-term wellness
PTSD Treatment in San Diego at Del Rae Behavioral Health
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is one of the most misunderstood and undertreated mental health conditions, and one of the most painful to live with. If you’ve experienced trauma and are struggling with intrusive memories, hypervigilance, emotional numbness, or a deep sense that something is permanently wrong, you are not broken. PTSD is a normal response to abnormal experiences. And with the right treatment, real healing is possible.
Del Rae Behavioral Health offers evidence-based PTSD treatment in San Diego through our outpatient mental health program. Our trauma-informed clinicians are experienced in helping individuals who have been through profoundly difficult experiences reclaim their sense of safety, connection, and well-being.
Understanding PTSD Treatment
PTSD can develop after any experience that is perceived as a threat to life or safety, whether that’s a single traumatic event or a prolonged pattern of adversity. Common causes include combat and military service, sexual assault or abuse, childhood trauma or neglect, accidents and natural disasters, sudden loss, and witnessing violence. PTSD can also develop secondhand, in first responders, healthcare workers, and others whose work regularly exposes them to others’ trauma.
Not everyone who experiences trauma develops PTSD, but for those who do, the impact on daily life can be severe. PTSD affects relationships, work, sleep, physical health, and the ability to experience joy and safety in the world. Left untreated, it often worsens over time, contributing to depression, substance use, and other mental health challenges.
Common symptoms of PTSD include:
Re-experiencing: Intrusive memories, flashbacks, nightmares, and intense emotional or physical reactions to reminders of the trauma.
Avoidance: Steering clear of thoughts, feelings, places, people, or activities associated with the traumatic event. Over time, avoidance tends to expand, narrowing the boundaries of your life.
Negative changes in thinking and mood: Persistent feelings of guilt, shame, or blame; distorted beliefs about the world or yourself; emotional numbness; difficulty experiencing positive emotions; feelings of estrangement from others.
Hyperarousal: Being constantly on edge, startling easily, having difficulty sleeping, feeling irritable or angry, struggling to concentrate. Hyperarousal is the nervous system stuck in survival mode.
If you recognize these patterns in yourself or someone you love, PTSD treatment can help.
The Del Rae Approachto PTSD Treatment
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is widely recognized as one of the most effective PTSD treatment San Diego and beyond has to offer, with strong endorsements from organizations including the World Health Organization and the American Psychiatric Association. It works by helping the brain reprocess traumatic memories that have become “stuck”, stored in ways that preserve the distress and physical sensations of the original experience rather than integrating them as past events.
In EMDR sessions, a trained therapist guides you through brief, focused attention on a traumatic memory while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulation, typically through guided eye movements. This process, though often surprising in its gentleness, can significantly reduce the emotional intensity of traumatic memories and allow new, more adaptive beliefs about yourself and the world to take hold.
Many clients who have struggled for years with PTSD symptoms experience meaningful relief through EMDR in a relatively short period of time.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for PTSD
Trauma-focused CBT is one of the best-studied treatments for PTSD. A specialized form of CBT, Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), was developed specifically for trauma survivors and focuses on identifying and challenging the “stuck points”: distorted thoughts about the trauma, oneself, and the world that maintain PTSD over time.
CBT for PTSD helps clients develop a more accurate and compassionate narrative of their traumatic experience, reduces shame and self-blame, and builds practical coping skills for managing PTSD symptoms in daily life.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
ACT is particularly valuable for trauma survivors who have built their lives around avoidance. By helping clients develop a different relationship with difficult thoughts and feelings, one of openness and curiosity rather than fear and control, ACT supports the kind of psychological flexibility that allows survivors to re-engage with their lives, relationships, and values without waiting for distress to disappear first.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
For clients with complex trauma, trauma that occurred repeatedly or during critical developmental periods, DBT offers an important set of skills for managing the intense emotional dysregulation that often accompanies complex PTSD. DBT’s skills in distress tolerance and emotional regulation help clients navigate crisis moments safely while longer-term healing work proceeds.
TMS for PTSD-Related Depression and Anxiety
For clients whose PTSD is accompanied by treatment-resistant depression or anxiety, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) may be recommended as an adjunct to psychotherapy. TMS is a non-invasive procedure that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate brain areas associated with mood regulation. It has shown promising results for PTSD-related symptoms, particularly in clients who have not responded well to medications.
Brain Mapping
Our use of brain mapping technology allows clinicians to assess patterns of brain activity that may be contributing to PTSD symptoms, enabling a more targeted and personalized approach to treatment planning. This neuro-informed approach sets Del Rae apart as a provider that takes the biology of trauma seriously.
Insurance Partnerships
Who We Serve
Del Rae Behavioral Health serves adults of all backgrounds who are living with PTSD or trauma-related challenges. We have particular experience working with:
- Military veterans and active-duty service members
- First responders, including law enforcement, firefighters, and EMTs
- Survivors of sexual assault or domestic violence
- Individuals with childhood trauma or complex PTSD
- Healthcare workers experiencing secondary traumatic stress
- Individuals whose trauma is connected to accidents, medical events, or sudden loss
Regardless of the nature of your trauma, our team will meet you with the same commitment to safety, respect, and genuine care.
Flexible Outpatient Scheduling That Supports Balance
Morning Session
8:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Afternoon Session
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Discover Why People Love Del Rae Behavioral Health
Hear firsthand why our care goes above and beyond to get people the help they need.
Taking the First Stepfor PTSD Care
We understand that reaching out for trauma treatment takes courage. The very nature of PTSD, its pull toward isolation and avoidance, the shame and self-doubt it can generate, can make seeking help feel impossible. We want you to know that this team will honor that courage. You will not be judged here. You will not be rushed. You will be met exactly where you are.
Our outpatient program means you can begin healing while remaining connected to your life, your community, and the people who matter to you. Healing from PTSD doesn’t require disappearing from your life, it happens within it, step by step, with the right support.
Alumni Support
Community Connections
Aftercare Planning
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Discover The Del Rae Difference
Del Rae Behavioral Health provides comprehensive outpatient behavioral health treatment in San Diego. Our approach is unique; we prioritize effective, evidence-based practices that truly make a difference in our clients’ lives. By focusing on personalized care and innovative techniques, we ensure that each individual receives the support they need to thrive mentally and emotionally. Our dedicated team is committed to helping you on your journey toward wellness and recovery, utilizing methods that have been proven to work.
