A Qualitative Exploration of Strategic Trauma and Abuse Recovery: A Spiritually Integrated Treatment to Address Trauma

Abstract

This article provided a brief overview of the Strategic Trauma and Abuse Recovery System (STARS), including its theoretical foundation, theory of change, and the process of the treatment model. STARS is a spiritually integrated treatment model first developed in a Christian counseling environment. We desired to learn if the clients who had completed this therapy were able to describe the process of therapy and whether those descriptions would align with the treatment model as described. Nine ( N = 9) participants who had successfully completed STARS participated in this qualitative study which reviewed the process of therapy. Our findings indicated close fidelity to the treatment model. Participants reported improvement in mental health symptoms, improvement in relationships, and improvement in spiritual well-being.