Therapeutic Assessment, Intimate Partner Violence, and Trauma: a case study of a woman and her therapeutic change

Therapeutic Assessment (TA) promotes therapeutic benefits for the client in different situations, such as in the face of psychological trauma in women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV), which leaves them in a state of emotional vulnerability, affecting different contexts of their lives. The objective was to discuss trauma-related changes in the TA process with a woman who experienced IPV. A case study was conducted and the reliable change rate of trauma-related factors before and after the TA process was statistically analyzed using the Self-Reporting Questionnaire, Magical Ideation Scale, Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory and Beck's Scales. The participant was 40 years old, experienced IPV and presented post-traumatic stress (PTS). After the assessment, she showed improvement in PTS and hopelessness. There was no change in self-esteem, psychological distress and magical thinking. There was a negative change in anxiety and depression throughout the process. Experiencing IPV can cause a state of trauma, generating stress, fear and anguish in the person, which can be related to anxiety and depression. TA enabled the client to reduce the mental and emotional disorganization she felt, reducing PTS. In addition, it helped the client to generate strategies to cope with violence, which allowed her to reduce the hopelessness she experienced regarding the future. Thus, TA demonstrated the ability to begin working with trauma in a context of violence, generating therapeutic improvements for the client and enabling the opening for the continuation of change in a psychotherapeutic process.