A smiling woman with curly brown hair sitting on a beige couch, working on a silver MacBook, in a cozy indoor space with a brick wall, a small tree, and white curtains in the background.

There is a way through what still feels stuck…

Common trauma patterns…

Trauma can look very different from person to person. Some people come in after clearly identifiable traumatic experiences, while others grew up in environments where emotional neglect, chronic stress, criticism or unpredictability shaped the way they learned to survive. Many trauma responses are adaptive patterns that once helped you cope — even if they no longer serve you now. Often, people begin to suspect trauma is present when they notice patterns like:

feeling chronically anxious, tense, or on edge
overfunctioning or feeling responsible for others’ emotions
difficulty relaxing without guilt or discomfort
strong emotional reactions that feel bigger than the present moment
repeating relationship dynamics that feel hard to change
feeling disconnected from emotions, needs, or sense of self

Person with short hair wearing black shirt and silver jewelry writing in a notebook on a wooden table, with a glass of water nearby.

Trauma therapy is a deeper form of therapy that focuses on how difficult, overwhelming, or emotionally painful experiences continue to affect the mind, body, relationships, and nervous system over time.

Trauma is not always tied to a single event. For many people, it can also develop through chronic stress, emotional neglect, unstable relationships, criticism, burnout, or experiences where they learned they had to stay hyperaware, self-protective, or emotionally disconnected in order to cope. Trauma therapy is not about endlessly reliving the past. It is about helping you understand the patterns your nervous system developed for survival while creating greater safety, regulation, connection, and emotional flexibility in the present.

My approach integrates depth-oriented therapy with trauma-informed approaches such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Internal Family Systems-informed parts work to support more lasting emotional healing.

You still may be wondering…

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a trauma-focused therapy approach that helps the brain and nervous system process experiences that may still feel emotionally “stuck.” Many people associate trauma only with major catastrophic events, but EMDR can also be helpful for experiences such as chronic stress, emotionally immature family dynamics, people-pleasing patterns, burnout, anxiety, relationship wounds, or longstanding negative beliefs about yourself. Rather than only talking through experiences intellectually, EMDR helps process the emotional and nervous system responses connected to them. Clients often seek EMDR when they feel like they understand their patterns logically but still feel emotionally stuck, reactive, overwhelmed, or disconnected underneath it all.
EMDR is often very different from traditional talk therapy. Sessions may involve noticing thoughts, emotions, body sensations, memories, or patterns while using bilateral stimulation such as eye movements, tapping, or audio tones. Some clients experience EMDR as emotionally deep and clarifying. Others notice shifts more gradually over time. The process is collaborative and paced carefully. EMDR is not about forcing you to relive overwhelming experiences before you are ready. A significant part of trauma therapy involves helping your nervous system feel safe enough for processing work to happen at all.
No. Many high-functioning adults minimize their experiences because nothing appeared obviously traumatic from the outside. EMDR can be helpful for experiences involving chronic emotional stress, criticism, emotional neglect, attachment wounds, parentification, burnout, perfectionism, or relationships where you learned to stay hyperaware of others’ needs and emotions. Often, the issue is not whether something was “bad enough,” but how your nervous system adapted in order to cope. You do not need to prove your pain in order for healing work to matter.
Internal Family Systems is an approach that helps people understand the different “parts” of themselves that developed in response to life experiences. For example, one part of you may be highly driven and perfectionistic, while another part feels exhausted, anxious, emotionally overwhelmed, or afraid of disappointing others. Rather than viewing these parts as flaws, the work focuses on understanding how they developed to protect you, help you cope, or help you feel safe. Many high-achieving or emotionally responsible people find parts work especially helpful because they often feel internally conflicted — wanting rest while pushing themselves relentlessly, craving connection while fearing vulnerability, or longing for boundaries while struggling with guilt. Parts work can help create greater self-understanding, self-compassion, emotional clarity, and internal balance.
No. Having different emotional parts, reactions, or internal conflicts is a normal human experience we all have. Many people notice different sides of themselves in different situations — a people-pleasing part, an anxious part, a highly productive part, a critical part, or a part that wants to withdraw completely. Parts work is not about labeling you as “broken.” It is about understanding the protective strategies your mind and nervous system developed over time. Often, the goal is not to get rid of these parts, but to understand them with more compassion and less shame.