You know something from back then is still running the show. You've managed around it for years. Managing is getting expensive.
Trauma doesn't always look like flashbacks. More often it looks like a temper that's too quick, sleep that won't settle, relationships that follow the same script, or a body that stays braced for something that isn't coming. You can be highly functional and still be carrying it.
What I work with
- A single event: an assault, an accident, a medical crisis, a sudden loss, a critical incident on the job
- Long-standing trauma from childhood or from a relationship, the kind that shaped how you attach, trust, and react
- Occupational trauma: cumulative exposure over a career in law enforcement, fire, EMS, dispatch, corrections, healthcare, or the military
- PTSD, diagnosed or not
- Trauma that comes with shame attached, including moral injury
What trauma does
When something overwhelming happens, the memory can get stored with all its original charge. The nervous system learns to treat reminders as the real thing. Later, you react to the present as if it were the past, faster than thought. That's not weakness or a character flaw. It's a system doing what it learned to do, and it can be retrained.
How I work
Trauma-focused therapy, with EMDR when it fits (more on that below). We start with stabilization: making sure you have what you need to stay on your feet between sessions before we touch anything heavy. Then we go at the material in a contained way, at a pace you control. You can stop at any point. You leave sessions functional, not wrecked.
When deeper work is clinically helpful, I'll say so and invite you into it. You decide. Concrete strategies run alongside the whole way: sleep, reactivity, boundaries, getting through a rough stretch.
Some people want to talk it through in detail. Most don't need to.
We build the floor before we go into the basement. You'll know what's coming before it comes, and you'll have a say in all of it.
EMDR, in brief
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a structured method that helps the brain finish processing an experience that got stored with all its original charge. You hold the memory in mind while following bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping, or alternating tones), and the emotional intensity typically comes down. The memory stays. It stops running the show.
People use it for a single event, for critical incidents, for childhood experiences that still shape how they react, and for patterns that keep repeating despite real effort. It works over video: the stimulation is done on screen or with self-tapping, and the structure of the session is the same. We spend real time on stabilization first, and you can stop at any point.
EMDR isn't the whole of trauma work and it isn't right for everyone on day one. When it fits, it's one of the most effective tools I have. The EMDR page goes into more detail on what to expect.
What "contained" means in practice
It means I won't open something we can't close in the time we have. It means you'll know what's coming before it comes. It means the work stays inside the session instead of following you into your week, and if it does follow you, we adjust.
Why I'm comfortable with this
Sixteen years across outpatient therapy, crisis response and assessment, residential treatment, and trauma-focused care, much of it with first responders. Nothing you bring in will rattle me. You do not need to clean up your story before you bring it in.
Questions people ask
Do I have to talk about what happened in detail?
No. You share what you're ready to share, at your own pace. EMDR in particular can work without you narrating every detail out loud.
How long does trauma therapy take?
It depends on what we're working with. A single incident with a stable life around it can move quickly. Long-standing trauma takes longer because there's more to untangle. I'll give you an honest read after the first few sessions, and we'll check in on progress as we go.
Can trauma therapy make things worse?
It can stir things up between sessions, which is exactly why we build stabilization first and go at your pace. You will not be pushed into material you're not ready for, and if something is stirring, we slow down.
Practical details
Telehealth only, by secure video, for clients located in Oregon, Washington, or California at the time of the session. $225 per session. I accept PacificSource (commercial and OHP) and Blue Cross. If your insurance isn't listed, contact me anyway. There are often other ways to get sessions covered, and I can help you sort that out. See Fees & Insurance.
If after a phone call it turns out I'm not the right fit, I'll point you to someone who is.
