GENTLE TRAUMA THERAPY & NERVOUS SYSTEM SUPPORT
What happened to you matters. So does what happens next.
Trauma has a way of staying present long after the events themselves have passed. The work we do together is about helping your nervous system catch up to recognizing that you are safe now.
WHAT TO EXPECT
What to Expect from Trauma Work
You may have stories that have been waiting a long time to be told. Questions you’ve been afraid to ask out loud. Ways you were hurt in places that were supposed to be safe.
There’s no script here for how this work unfolds. You might find yourself naming things you have never had language for before. You might need time to sit with what is surfacing, letting your nervous system catch up to what your mind is starting to recognize. If anger rises up after years of being taught it wasn't allowed, there is room for that. If grief comes in waves, we will make space for it. If you’re not sure what you believe or feel, that uncertainty is welcome too.
You don’t need to arrive with clarity or the right words. Healing isn’t about having the answers—it'‘ about creating the freedom to ask your own questions.
HOW I APPROACH TRAUMA
The Frameworks I Draw From
Narrative Therapy: High-demand systems are, among other things, story systems. They tell you who you are, what you deserve, who belongs, and what is possible—and they repeat those stories until you internalize them. Narrative therapy helps you identify the stories you have inherited, separate them from your identity, and begin authoring new ones that are chosen by you.
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT): ACT starts from the premise that a meaningful life isn’t about eliminating difficult thoughts and feelings—it is about learning to move with them rather than being controlled by them. We clarify what matters most to you and take steps toward living in alignment with those values, even when it is hard.
Somatic Approaches: Trauma lives in the body. High-demand systems don’t just shape your beliefs; they shape your nervous system’s responses to the world—chronic tension, hypervigilance, numbness, the startle response that is always a little too ready. Somatic approaches bring attention to what your body is carrying and help you work with physical sensations and patterns as part of the healing process.
Compassionate Inquiry: A therapy approach that helps you look beneath the surface of your patterns and behaviors—with curiosity rather than judgment—to understand what they’re protecting you from and what they’re trying to tell you.
Mindfulness: Mindfulness is the practice of pausing to notice what is happening inside you—thoughts, feelings, sensations—without immediately reacting. That pause is where a lot of healing lives. We weave mindfulness into the work as a way of building awareness, slowing automatic responses, and creating space for more intentional choices.
PREDICTIVE PROCESSING FLASH
Predictive Processing Flash Technique
One specialized tools I use is the Predictive Processing Flash Technique (PPFT)—a safe, gentle, and research-informed method for reducing the emotional charge of painful or traumatic memories.
Traditional trauma processing sometimes asks you to revisit distressing experiences in detail, which can feel overwhelming—especially if your nervous system feels activated. PPFT works differently. Rather than re-immersing you in the memory, you stay grounded while your brain processes the memory in small "microslices." The result is a significant reduction in the emotional intensity of the memory, without requiring you to relive it.
This makes PPFT particularly accessible for people who:
Have felt hesitant about trauma therapy or had difficult experiences with it before
Find that their nervous system becomes easily overwhelmed
Are neurodivergent and process intensity differently
Are just beginning to work with traumatic memories and want a low-distress entry point
PPFT is one tool among many, not a one-size-fits-all approach. We'll always work together to determine what feels right for you.
"Safety is not the absence of threat. It is the presence of connection."
—Bonnie Badenoch
Ready to begin?
Reach out and we will start with a brief phone call to talk about what you’re experiencing and whether therapy feels like the right next step.