TRAUMA THERAPY

Trauma therapy helps you understand how painful or overwhelming experiences may still affect emotions, thoughts, body responses, relationships, behavior, identity, and everyday life. Depending on your needs, therapy may include education, regulation and coping skills, relationship work, EMDR, meaning-making, memory processing, and practical support for present-day concerns.

The goal is not to erase the past. It is to help the past have less control over the way you experience the present.

Trauma can follow a single event such as violence, an accident, a disaster, a medical emergency, assault, or sudden loss. It can also develop through repeated or long-term experiences such as abuse, neglect, unsafe relationships, discrimination, bullying, exposure to crisis, community violence, or having to remain in survival mode for too long.

People can experience the same event differently. Therapy does not require you to prove that what happened was “bad enough” before your distress deserves care.

No. People can have many reactions after a traumatic event, and many recover over time without developing post-traumatic stress disorder. PTSD is a specific diagnosis involving a particular pattern of symptoms that continues beyond the immediate aftermath and causes significant distress or impairment.

You can still benefit from trauma-informed therapy without meeting the criteria for PTSD. We focus on what you are experiencing and what support you need rather than requiring one diagnosis to validate your story.

Trauma-related distress may include nightmares, unwanted memories, flashbacks, avoidance, feeling constantly alert, startling easily, sleep problems, emotional numbness, anger, shame, panic, disconnection, people pleasing, perfectionism, difficulty trusting, or strong reactions that feel hard to explain.

These experiences can also occur for other reasons. Therapy includes understanding the full picture instead of assuming every symptom is caused by trauma.

No. You do not need a formal PTSD diagnosis or a complete explanation of what happened before reaching out. We can begin with the symptoms, relationship patterns, triggers, or sense of disconnection you are noticing and determine together what kind of support may fit.

No. Trauma therapy does not require you to disclose every detail immediately, and some approaches do not require a detailed verbal retelling. We discuss what information is clinically helpful, what you consent to work on, and how to pace the process responsibly.

Avoiding every difficult topic forever may keep you stuck, but pushing into material without preparation or collaboration can also be unhelpful. We work toward a pace that supports both safety and meaningful change.

You do not need a complete or perfectly organized memory to begin therapy. Stress, age at the time, repeated experiences, dissociation, ordinary limits of memory, and many other factors can affect what a person recalls.

Therapy is not used to recover, verify, or prove memories. We avoid pressuring you to fill in gaps and instead work with what you remember, what you experience now, and what can be addressed safely in the present.

You do not need to be perfectly calm or completely free of symptoms before trauma work can begin. We do assess safety, stability, dissociation, supports, current stressors, and your ability to return to the present after distress.

Some people benefit from more time building regulation, trust, and coping resources. Others may be ready for focused processing sooner. Preparation and pacing are individualized rather than treated as a test you have to pass.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is a structured trauma therapy that uses bilateral stimulation while working with distressing memories, beliefs, emotions, and body sensations. It is designed to support reprocessing so the memory can feel less immediate and disruptive in the present.

EMDR is not hypnosis, does not erase memory, and does not remove your control. It includes assessment, preparation, processing, closure, and reevaluation. Whether it is appropriate depends on your history, needs, goals, and current safety.

EMDR can be adapted for secure telehealth. Online bilateral stimulation may involve guided eye movements, alternating sounds, tapping, or specialized digital tools. Before beginning, we discuss privacy, technology, grounding, the physical environment, emergency planning, and how to close the session safely.

Virtual EMDR is not the best fit for every client or every situation. We assess whether online work is clinically appropriate and discuss alternatives or referrals when another setting or level of care would be safer or more effective.

Complex trauma generally refers to repeated, prolonged, or relational trauma, especially when escape, protection, or dependable support was limited. People may notice difficulties with emotional regulation, shame, identity, trust, relationships, dissociation, boundaries, or a persistent sense of threat.

Complex PTSD, often called CPTSD, is recognized in some diagnostic systems but is not a separate diagnosis in the current DSM used in the United States. You do not need that label for us to take long-term and relational trauma seriously.

Yes. Early relationships can shape beliefs about safety, worth, trust, needs, conflict, closeness, and what you must do to remain connected. Therapy may help you understand protective patterns, grieve what was missing, strengthen boundaries, build self-trust, and practice relationships that allow more safety and choice.

The purpose is not to blame one person for every present-day struggle. It is to understand how earlier experiences may still influence the way you protect yourself and connect now.

Neurodivergence may shape sensory responses, communication, executive functioning, memory, emotional regulation, masking, and what feels overwhelming. Therapy may need changes in pace, language, structure, sensory support, processing time, or the way EMDR and coping tools are introduced.

Trauma and neurodivergence can overlap without being the same. I do not treat authentic autistic or ADHD traits as symptoms to remove. Learn more about my affirming care on the ADHD therapy page and the Autism and AuDHD therapy page.

Trauma in teens may show up as withdrawal, irritability, anxiety, emotional numbness, sleep changes, sudden fears, school problems, physical complaints, difficulty trusting, risky choices, or self-harm. Therapy can offer a respectful space to understand what is happening, build regulation and coping skills, communicate needs, process experiences appropriately, and reconnect with support.

Parent or guardian involvement depends on age, safety, consent, legal requirements, and the treatment plan. Learn more on the Teen Therapy page.

Yes. I support first responders and veterans navigating single-event trauma, cumulative exposure, hypervigilance, sleep disruption, grief, moral pain, emotional numbing, anger, relationship strain, identity changes, and the difficulty of shifting out of operational survival mode.

Therapy is direct, respectful, and paced without assuming that one experience or occupational culture represents everyone. More information is available on the First Responders page.

Yes. Trauma can affect trust, closeness, conflict, boundaries, intimacy, communication, and the ability to ask for or accept support. Individual trauma therapy can help you recognize protective relationship patterns and develop more choice in how you connect.

When the relationship itself needs focused treatment, couples or family therapy may be recommended alongside or instead of individual work. Trauma never excuses abuse, coercion, or ongoing harm.

Therapy cannot make ongoing danger safe. When harm, coercion, stalking, violence, abuse, or another serious threat is current, the first priority may be safety planning, crisis resources, medical care, legal advocacy, shelter support, or a higher level of care rather than memory processing.

We can discuss options carefully and connect you with appropriate resources. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911 or local emergency services.

There is no universal timeline. Length depends on your goals, the type and duration of trauma, current safety, support system, symptoms, health, dissociation, life stress, treatment approach, and how your needs change over time.

We review progress and goals together rather than assuming that faster always means better or that therapy must continue forever.

No. As a marriage and family therapist, I do not prescribe medication or provide comprehensive psychological or neuropsychological testing. When helpful, I can discuss coordinated care or referrals for medication evaluation, medical assessment, formal testing, substance use treatment, or another specialized service.

Routine outpatient telehealth is not an emergency or crisis service. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. In the United States, you can call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

If your needs require more support than periodic outpatient sessions can safely provide, we will discuss crisis resources, coordinated care, or a more intensive treatment setting.

I provide fully virtual trauma therapy to teens and adults who are physically located in South Carolina or Colorado at the time of each session. I accept select insurance plans, and self-pay options are available. Because coverage varies by plan, state, and service, visit the rates and insurance page or contact the practice to confirm current details.

You can request an appointment through the secure client portal or use the contact page to ask a question. You do not need to share your full trauma history in an initial message. We can begin with what support you are seeking and whether online therapy feels like an appropriate fit.