"Trauma isn't what happened to you. It's about what happened inside you as a result of what happened. We can't control what happened, but the wound inside we can heal anytime." Dr. Gabor Mate

What is Trauma?

In simple terms, "trauma" is a wound or injury to the nervous system, where our system experiences an event as too much, too fast and too soon to process.

Trauma is being stuck in a defensive state in our bodies and nervous system. It's a person's reaction to an event, not the event itself. 

This can take two paths:

1. An acute life threat reaction - the individual survives something or multiple things that are considered one-time events, which leaves them in a stuck defensive state. Some examples would be: war, school shooting, car crash or sexual assault. This would be associated with PTSD and the freeze mixed state of our nervous system.
2. A chronic disruption of connectedness - the individual's safe and healthy attachment with their caregiver(s) is consistently cut off lacking nurturing, attunement and caring, often dismissing a reasonable emotional response. Some examples include: parental neglect, physical or emotional abuse. This would be associated with C-PTSD and one of the primary defensive states.

Stuck, not broken.

When there's a trauma and one is stuck in this defensive state, we take on emotions such as guilt and shame and develop a narrative where you may feel:

• out of control, feeling like bad or traumatic things that happened or continue to happen are your fault
• unworthy, undeserving of love, feeling unlovable or not good enough
• difficulty feeling a sense of belonging and support, denying needs
• lack of freedom, feeling contracted, vigilant, tight or in chronic pain; not feeling safe in relationships
• feeling under appreciation, having a series of relationships that aren't meeting your needs, or codependent patterns needing to please others
• challenges with healthy sexuality or spirituality development

These early beliefs makes us feel broken, scarred and feeling like there is something fundamentally wrong with us. Through trauma treatment, we begin to loosen from the stuck state of our bodies and return to our core wholeness, shifting in to reclaiming your sense of safety, belonging, support, power, freedom, responsibility, appreciation, sexuality & spirituality.

Healing is possible

When tenderness, care and compassion are brought to the parts of you that experienced these events, healing is possible.

Old beliefs and narratives sometimes feel they are true in your current experience, but in reality it's an outdated thought that helped you get through a very difficult time. These experiences and beliefs can be acknowledged in therapy, gently left in the past, and your internal system is then updated to current time reclaiming presence in the here and now. You will likely sleep better and feel an ability to tolerate life's challenges a little less reactive.

After therapy you may begin to:

• Allow yourself to:
• experience emotions safely
• receive comfort in grounding practices 
• increased distress tolerance
• Confident, kind, clear boundary setting
• Develop a positive relationship with and be a compassionate ally to the part of yourself that experienced the trauma
• Explore healthy intimacy, vulnerability and sexuality
• Feel empowered in relationships; allow yourself to have needs and communicate effective boundaries
• Feeling more positively connected to your body
• Find forgiveness for yourself and others
• Grieve
• Have increased compassion for yourself and others
• Learn how childhood experiences may have led to limiting beliefs
• Learn more about your nervous system and how the pain of your experience was trapped in your body
• Let go of feelings of being responsible for what happened to you
• Make meaning of your experiences and embrace the strategies that helped you cope
• Release tension where trauma may be held in your body
• Sleep better or feel more rested
• Understand, express, and release difficult emotions such as shame guilt and anger

Trauma Treatment Modalities

My work draws on several trauma informed "bottom up" modalities such as:

• Accelerated Resolution Therapy
• Attachment Theory
• Polyvagal Theory
• Hakomi Mindfulness Based Somatic Therapy
• EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
• Internal Family Systems

I'm dedicated to walking with you to help you heal childhood wounds, work through grief and loss or the stress from trauma life brings. We will find your inner truth, be free of shame or guilt and find presence. The process allows you to feel grounded, centered, empowered to make change, and connected to your life, work and relationships.

Some of my favorite social media shared on trauma, post-traumatic growth & healing: