Therapeutic Methods

Trauma therapy helps you make sense of what happened and how it’s still showing up in your life.

Whether you’ve been through something big and obvious or something harder to name, trauma can leave a lasting imprint on your nervous system. You might feel stuck in patterns you can’t explain, like anxiety, people-pleasing, shutting down, or getting overwhelmed by things that seem “small.”

Trauma therapy is about more than just talking. It’s about helping your body feel safe again, so you can respond instead of react, and finally move forward with more ease, clarity, and connection.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a research-backed therapy that helps your brain process and heal from painful or overwhelming experiences, especially those tied to trauma.

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It works by using gentle eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation (like tapping) to help “unstick” memories that feel frozen in your nervous system. This allows your brain to reprocess them in a way that feels less distressing and more manageable, so you’re no longer triggered in the same way.

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You don’t have to relive every detail for EMDR to work, and you stay in control throughout the process.

Mindfulness is about learning to be present with yourself, your body, and your emotions, without judgment.

In therapy, I use mindfulness to help you slow down, notice what’s happening inside your body, and respond with more clarity and intention. This might mean paying attention to your breath, tracking sensations in your body, or simply becoming aware of your thoughts instead of getting swept up in them.

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You don’t have to “clear your mind” or meditate for hours.
Mindfulness is really about building awareness and self-compassion so you can feel more centered, less reactive, and more connected to what you truly need.

Polyvagal Theory helps us understand that our nervous system holds the story of our past, and sometimes it gets stuck in survival mode even when we're safe now.

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This approach looks at how your body responds to stress, safety, and connection. It’s based on the idea that your nervous system is always scanning for cues trying to decide if you're okay or in danger. And sometimes, because of past experiences, it gets that read wrong.

 

In therapy, we use Polyvagal Theory to help you gently come out of that survival state. Whether that looks like anxiety, shutdown, or disconnection, we work together to create more moments of safety, connection, and regulation, so your body can begin to trust the present, not just brace for the past.

When you’ve lived through trauma, your nervous system can get stuck in defense mode, even long after the danger has passed. You might find yourself feeling constantly on edge, shutting down in relationships, or struggling to connect with others even when you want to.

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The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a gentle, music-based therapy that helps shift your body out of survival mode and into a state of regulation. Using specially filtered music designed to signal safety to your nervous system, SSP helps calm the fight-flight-freeze response and increase your capacity for connection, presence, and calm.

 

It’s especially helpful for clients who feel stuck in talk therapy or who want to feel more grounded before processing deeper trauma. SSP can also make other approaches, like EMDR, somatic therapy, or IFS, more effective by giving your nervous system a stronger foundation for healing.

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