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How Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) Helps Trauma Survivors Heal
A Step-by-Step Guide to Transforming Pain into a Coherent Life Story
Telling Your Story: How Narrative Exposure Therapy Helps People Heal from Trauma
If you’ve ever felt trapped by your past or haunted by memories you can’t quite piece together, you’re not alone. Trauma can feel chaotic and confusing, leaving behind fragments of fear, guilt, or even excitement that don’t seem to fit into a coherent picture. That’s where Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) comes in — a powerful, short-term therapy designed to help people process traumatic experiences by turning them into a structured, meaningful life story. Originally developed for survivors of war and organized violence, NET has since been successfully applied to a wide range of individuals, including veterans, refugees, and even survivors of natural disasters (Schauer, Neuner, & Elbert, 2011).
What is Narrative Exposure Therapy?
NET is a multicultural, short-term treatment typically consisting of four to twelve sessions, each lasting around 90 minutes. The approach has been shown to effectively reduce symptoms of traumatic stress, especially anger and aggression, which can often mask deeper feelings of fear or vulnerability (Hecker, 2015; Schnyder & Cloitre, 2015). What sets NET apart is its ability to help…
