Maybe your body stays on alert long after there is anything to fear, or a small moment can pull you straight back into an old one. Trauma that repeated over time can leave your nervous system braced and your sense of self worn thin. A Complex PTSD evaluation in Sun Prairie, WI helps you understand where those reactions come from, gently and without judgment, and no referral is required to begin.
The starting point of every evaluation is a baseline of cognitive and executive function, which anchors the rest of the assessment. From that foundation your psychologist brings in trauma focused and emotional measures suited to your particular history, staying with you as one licensed provider through every step. And because complex trauma seldom stands alone, the process screens for the concerns that commonly accompany it.
In young children, we stay patient and observant instead of naming a condition too soon. The work centers on how continuing stress or adversity is landing for a child, and on spotting the people, places, and rhythms that reliably help them feel calmer and more protected.
Among teens, look for emotions that run to extremes, an identity that feels harsh or unsettled, and a hard time trusting or letting anyone in. What can seem like an overreaction usually fits together once the experiences a teen has been through come into view.
In adults, common signs are a lingering sense of shame or being not enough, emotions that are difficult to regulate, and trust that stays out of reach. Many feel unsafe even in calm settings, and the effects tend to surface across relationships, work, and the texture of everyday life.
Things begin with about an hour of conversation, during which your psychologist gathers a detailed personal history in a calm, supportive setting. Because Complex PTSD tends to arise from experiences that repeated across time, this talk follows a longer arc, looking at how those years shaped your emotions, your relationships, and how you see yourself. You lead the pace.
From there, your psychologist selects a battery of assessments built to reveal the many layers complex trauma leaves. In person testing generally takes 2 to 6 hours across one to two days, and you leave with self report questionnaires, plus the choice to have someone close complete theirs. If anxiety, depression, dissociation, or ADHD show up in the picture, those areas are screened too.
Every result, from the testing data to the clinical observations and questionnaire answers, comes together in a thorough diagnostic report. Your psychologist traces how complex trauma has shaped emotional regulation, identity, relationships, and cognition, and carefully records any co occurring conditions so the full picture stands clear.
Around two to three weeks afterward, you return for a feedback session. Your psychologist talks you through the diagnosis in everyday language and shares recommendations made for you, spanning specialized trauma therapy, strategies for steadying emotion, support for your relationships, and the next steps that match your own healing.
No, being seen at Core Spring Diagnostics never depends on a referral. You are free to contact us directly, for any reason you have.
Complex PTSD generally follows prolonged or repeated trauma and touches self image, emotion regulation, and relationships more widely, while PTSD often stems from a single event. The evaluation helps clarify which description fits your experience.
A trauma informed interview, a cognitive and executive function baseline, trauma focused and emotional measures, and screening for related concerns, all carried out by one psychologist at a pace that honors your story.
Yes, we evaluate both teens and adults, and with younger clients we approach trauma related patterns slowly and with real care.
A plain language report and a feedback session with individualized, trauma informed recommendations, and a clear path toward healing you can follow.
Phone our Madison office at (608) 396 4830 and we will schedule a time together. No referral is needed beforehand; you can just reach out when you feel ready.
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