If your past is heavy or complicated, know that I am okay and will be able to hold it with you. Experiences of trauma occur when an event happens in a way that is too big, too much, and too fast for our nervous systems to handle and process like we would during a “typical” stressful experience. If you find yourself experiencing big emotional or physical responses when you are reminded of a situation from the past or working really hard to avoid thinking or feeling any type of way about it, this might be a sign that your brain and body haven’t been fully able to process a traumatic event that has happened to you.

Additionally, for those who grew up in environments where overwhelming and upsetting events happened continually or in a way that almost felt “normal,” impacts of these dynamics might have seeped into even bigger parts of your life and your identity – the way you see and feel about yourself, deal with day-to-day stress, form relationships with other people, and more.

Traumatic events and our reactions to them tend to make us feel overwhelmed, powerless, and isolated. But trauma happens TO us and does not need to dictate who we are. Together, we can work at a pace that feels both safe and challenging-in-a-good way to manage your reactions, process the past, and figure out who the heck YOU actually are in the process. This is some of my very favorite work to do in therapy with my clients!

The Religious Trauma Institute defines an “Adverse Religious Experience” as “any experience of a religious belief, practice, or structure that undermines an individual's sense of safety or autonomy and/or negatively impacts their physical, social, emotional, relational, or psychological well-being.” Research indicates that events like this can lead people to have experiences or symptoms that are similar to what you might expect from any other traumatic event.

I have lived experiences and specialized therapeutic training related to religious trauma and spiritual abuse. Religion and spirituality are areas that many feel hesitant to address in therapy, but religious and spiritual experiences can shape so much of who we are, how our brains work, and how fulfilling life feels—in ways that can range from incredibly empowering to deeply harmful. I welcome examining your relationship with religion and spirituality, whether you are experiencing confusion, hurt, guilt, anger, gratitude, numbness, or any other combination of feelings about it. Let’s go there together, in a way that is nonjudgmental, exploratory, and at your pace.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy is an evidence-based method for processing experiences that have unhelpfully shaped what you think, feel, or believe about yourself. It uses a combination of body-based and cognitive strategies to hep clients digest and organize memories, concepts, and beliefs that have caused distress and felt intimidating to process.

I have completed EMDR Basic Training 1 & 2 and currently engage in regular EMDR consultations to pursue further certification in this modality. This means that I am qualified to use this therapy model to help my clients with their processing.

If you are not sure whether EMDR is for you, that’s okay! We can explore this and other therapy approaches to see what truly makes sense for you. You can read up on and learn more about EMDR here: https://www.emdria.org/