Trauma can affect you long after an experience is over. You may know exactly what happened, or you may simply notice that certain situations, relationships, or emotions seem to affect you more strongly than you expect.
Trauma can come from many experiences, including abuse, neglect, accidents, loss, relationship experiences, or other events that left you feeling unsafe, overwhelmed, or changed in some way.
You don't have to be experiencing flashbacks or have a diagnosis for your experiences to be worth exploring. Sometimes trauma shows up as anxiety, difficulty trusting others, feeling constantly on edge, avoiding certain situations, or struggling to understand why you react the way you do.
When the Past Is Still Affecting You
You may notice:
- Feeling anxious, tense, or easily overwhelmed
- Being constantly alert or expecting something to go wrong
- Avoiding people, places, or situations that bring up difficult feelings
- Having strong emotional reactions that seem difficult to control
- Trouble trusting yourself or other people
- Feeling disconnected, numb, or emotionally shut down
- Difficulty sleeping or relaxing
- Replaying past experiences or wishing you could stop thinking about them
- Struggling with shame, guilt, anger, or self-blame
- Finding that past experiences continue to affect your relationships
You may also know that something happened to you, but feel unsure about how much it is still affecting your life. Therapy can provide a place to explore that without having to force yourself to talk about more than you're ready for.
Healing From Trauma
Trauma therapy isn't about forgetting what happened. It's about helping you feel less controlled by what happened.
Together, we can work to understand the connection between past experiences and the way you think, feel, and respond today. We may focus on feeling safer and more grounded, reducing anxiety and emotional reactivity, building trust in yourself, or changing patterns that no longer serve you.
I use a combination of approaches depending on what you need. EMDR can be particularly helpful for processing traumatic or distressing experiences. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can also help with anxious thoughts, self-blame, and beliefs that developed in response to difficult experiences.
You don't have to know exactly which approach you need before starting therapy. We'll figure that out together.
A Pace That Feels Right for You
Talking about difficult experiences can feel vulnerable. Therapy should not mean being pushed to revisit something before you're ready.
My approach is collaborative and grounded in the belief that you should have a say in what we work on and how quickly we move. We can start with what's happening in your life right now and gradually work toward a better understanding of what has been affecting you.
The goal is to help you feel more grounded, more confident in yourself, and more able to move forward without the past continuing to take up so much space.
If you're struggling with the effects of trauma or a difficult past experience, a free 20-minute consultation is a chance to talk about what you're looking for and see whether I might be a good fit.