Trauma isn’t just what happened; it’s what happened inside you.

As Dr. Gabor Maté describes, the event itself doesn’t define trauma, but by what happens within you in response to it.

Trauma can take many forms. It might stem from a single overwhelming event (“Big T trauma”), or from smaller, chronic experiences that left an imprint, such as moments of emotional neglect, instability, or loss of safety. Sometimes, it’s a series of distressing events or environments that accumulate over time, leading to what’s known as complex PTSD. 

Trauma is less about the story itself and more about how your mind and body learned to adapt. Those adaptations, such as staying vigilant, shutting down, and disconnecting, are your system’s way of protecting you, even when they no longer serve you today.

You may notice patterns like emotional overwhelm, chronic anxiety, difficulty trusting others, feeling detached or disconnected, or constantly being “on guard.”

Even when life feels stable, your body may still carry the imprint of what it’s been through.

Understanding trauma through the nervous system

Trauma lives in both the mind and the body. It can affect mood, memory, relationships, and self-perception, but it also shapes how your nervous system responds to stress.

Through a trauma-informed lens, therapy helps you:

• Understand your body’s natural responses of fight, flight, freeze, or fawn

• Recognize triggers and patterns of dysregulation

• Develop awareness and tools for grounding, safety, and self-regulation

• Reconnect with parts of yourself that have been disconnected or shut down

This process isn’t about revisiting pain for its own sake, but about creating the safety needed for your system to process and integrate what it has carried.

How we’ll work together

Our work draws from both insight-based and body-oriented approaches, creating space for awareness, regulation, and connection to grow together.

Our work invites a gradual return to balance, integrating understanding, emotion, and presence at a pace that feels safe for you.

Living from the present, not the past

Healing from trauma doesn’t mean erasing the past; it means learning to live in the present without having it continually shaped or filtered by the past. 

If this resonates, I’d love to connect and explore how I can support you.