Trauma & PTSD
Healing is possible. You are not broken.
Understanding Trauma
Trauma can be any event that exceeded your capacity to cope. The lasting impacts of trauma can weave their way into the very fabric of your being, often extending far beyond the event itself. These experiences leave imprints on how you regulate emotions, how you perceive yourself and others, and even your physical health. The effects can linger for years, sometimes decades, influencing relationships, career paths, and overall life satisfaction if not addressed with understanding and care.
The effects of trauma can look like unwanted upsetting memories, flashbacks, nightmares, emotional distress, negative thoughts and beliefs about yourself, the world and others. You might experience hypervigilance, anger, aggression, isolation, loss of interest in things you once enjoyed, difficulty concentrating, and physical reactivity. These are not signs that you are broken. They are normal responses to experiences that were not normal.
Trauma comes in many forms. It might be a single event like a car accident, assault, or witnessing violence. It could be complex trauma, which is repetitive harm over time. It might be developmental trauma from childhood, relational trauma from abusive relationships, betrayal trauma where trust was shattered, or traumatic grief after a devastating loss. Whatever form your trauma takes, your experience is valid and deserving of compassionate support.
Support for Veterans & First Responders
Specialized understanding of the unique challenges faced by those who serve
I Understand the Culture
As a military wife who lived through 25 years of deployments, I understand the unique pressures of service. The hypervigilance that keeps you alive in the field but makes it hard to come home. The moral injuries that aren't talked about. The weight of decisions made under impossible circumstances. I understand what it means to serve and the cost it exacts.
Specialized Training
Specialized training in working with military members, RCMP, first responders, and their families. I have completed Understanding Fire Fighter Culture & Trauma and Understanding Emergency Worker Trauma through First Responder Health Education. Deep understanding of operational stress injuries, moral injury, post-traumatic stress, and the unique transition challenges that come with service.
I am listed as an Occupationally Aware Healthcare Provider for OSI. You won't have to explain the context. I already understand.
A Safe Place to Let Your Guard Down
You've been trained to be strong, to push through, to not show weakness. Here, you don't have to be any of those things. This is a space where you can finally let your guard down and process what you've experienced without judgment. Vulnerability here is not weakness. It's courage.
Support for Families
Trauma doesn't affect just the individual. It affects the whole family. Support is available for spouses, partners, and family members navigating the ripple effects of operational stress, the challenges of military and first responder life, and the unique strain it places on relationships and home life.
Family Support Resources:
Evidence-Based Treatment Approaches
Trauma-Focused Therapies
I offer an integrative approach using evidence-based therapies proven effective for trauma and PTSD. This includes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) adapted for trauma, Narrative Therapy to help you reclaim your story, and Solution-Focused approaches that honor your strengths and resilience. Treatment is always tailored to your unique needs, your comfort level, and your pace. It's never one-size-fits-all.
Somatic and Body-Based Approaches
Trauma lives in the body, not just the mind. When words aren't enough, body-based approaches can help. I incorporate Neurodynamic Breathwork, a powerful somatic practice that uses conscious breathing to access your body's innate healing intelligence, release stored trauma, and regulate your nervous system. Through grounding techniques and body awareness, we help your nervous system learn that the danger has passed.
Building Resources and Resilience
Before processing trauma, we build your capacity to manage distress and regulate your emotions. You'll learn grounding techniques, calming skills, and ways to create safety in both your body and your environment. This foundation of safety and coping skills is essential. It makes you strong enough to face what happened without being retraumatized.
Safety, Trust, and Your Control
Trauma treatment is never forced. You are always in control of what you share and when you share it. We move at your pace, and you can pause, slow down, or change direction at any time. You won't be pushed or rushed. This is about what feels safe and right for you, not about meeting some external timeline or expectation.
Essential to trauma therapy is being believed by your therapist, feeling compassion and empathy, not feeling pushed, feeling safe, and experiencing emotional attunement and respect for your boundaries. Healing happens in relationship, in an environment where you feel genuinely safe and understood. We build that foundation of safety and trust first, before ever processing traumatic memories.
You don't have to share every detail of what happened for healing to occur. The focus is on helping you process the impact trauma has had on your life and helping you reclaim the person you want to be. Together, we work toward post-traumatic growth, not just survival, but thriving.
What You Can Expect
Establish safety and build coping skills
Process trauma at your own pace
Rebuild meaning and connection