Healing from trauma can feel like going deep-sea diving.

 

You feel like you are drowning in the waves of daily stressors. Some challenges might be with family members, difficulty at work, problems with current relationships or self-esteem. Some stressors are very clearly connected to traumatic experiences, like upsetting thoughts or unwanted images. These trauma-stressors are like lightning - they come in flashes, often passing very quickly, but the effect of the charge can feel paralyzing.

 

The emotional pain sometimes feels unbearable and overwhelming. You might be using excessive drinking, smoking/vaping weed, cutting, gambling, sex, shopping, over-eating, under-eating, or yelling as life rafts to numb the pain.

 

Whatever skills you are currently using to stay afloat was helpful at one point in you journey, but now that once-reliable floatation device might be losing its air and causing you to struggle even more. 

 

You want relief.

 

If someone has difficulty stay afloat within the currents and storms of daily life, they usually aren’t ready to go deep sea diving. If this is you, we might start by helping you to improve your emotional swimming skills. I will show you new strategies and anchoring techniques to manage the big waves of fear, sadness, loneliness, and panic. These skills come from therapy practices like DBT skills and meditation.

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Once you feel more confident getting through the ups and downs of daily life, then it’s time to get ready for deeper work.

 

All scuba divers need to feel comfortable with their oxygen tank. In my therapy space, the oxygen tank is any connection to the breath and, for some, a Higher Power. I do not promote a particular faith system. My intention is to promote a mind-body connection; clients learn to be attuned to their breath and somatic (bodily) responses. Mindfulness practices allow us to connect with calm and therefore access the sacred, inner, wise Self that sometimes gets lost in muddy, tumultuous waters.
 

It is always the client who is in control of their healing and self-discovery process; I serve as a guide. I gently encourage my clients to explore dark places, hidden caves, and the wreckage at the bottom of the ocean. It is often these old pieces at the bottom of the ocean that impact the strength of the waves on the surface, your challenges in present-day.

 

Using a variety of modalities including EMDR, Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), and creative expression – all depending on what you need, I support my clients as they clear out the old wreckage at the bottom of their ocean, dissolve trauma-related suffering, overcome fear, and discover more empowering beliefs.

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My clients learn to enjoy and embody the full-expression of their True selves.

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