PTSD & Trauma | “It’s like my mind is chained to what happened and my body can’t forget.”
It’s not about what happened to you. It all depends on what happened inside of you! In face of trauma and stressful events, our survival patterns of fight, flight, freeze and feign death become activated. And, if we can’t find safety or regain control, our brain and body become stuck in “redo mode” commonly experienced as flashbacks, emotional dysregulation, somatic sensations or nightmares.
Learn more about psychological trauma and it’s symptoms.
Anxiety | “It’s like my brain has no brakes!”
The human brain has a hard time coping with uncertainty. For millions of years, our physiology has survived in part due to our ability to search for patterns and predict what comes next. But in the absence of answers and predetermined outcomes, we are cursed with modern day anxiety! We are left with a racing mind running like an engine without brakes, tension and breathlessness in the body, and a chronic sense of being out of control.
Let’s stop trying to “manage” or “accommodate” anxiety; instead let’s look underneath at its root causes.
Depression | “When all the doors feel closed.”
Numbed out. Detached. Hopeless and defeated to make change. Depression is simply the nervous system’s way of saying “I’ve had enough pain”. We withdraw or turn towards a nihilistic worldview. The body shuts down and lethargy sets in to preserve energy for basic needs. Depression is a neurophysiological mechanism to move away from feeling strong emotions past, present and future.
Together, we can bite size the pain and can find a way out of depression’s grip.
Childhood Trauma & Neglect | “I just got way too much of nothing good!”
In the absence of an adequately nurturing and protective environment, our brain forms a unique neuropsychological blueprint colored by rigid defenses against betrayal, abandonment, criticism and many other relational injuries. The next mechanism to follow is rejecting ourselves and distrust in the world around.
Learn more about childhood developmental trauma.
Relationship Issues | “When I don’t belong and I never feel enough.”
At the heart of human experience is the need to be seen, loved and chosen. The most natural response to being denied these crucial emotional nutrients is to make attempts to control our relationships. So we try to have more power or give up parts of ourselves; we take more space and become more intense, or we withdraw secretly hoping for a repair. Ultimately, we are all trying to avoid being alone; for aloneness is the most lethal poison for our nervous system.
Let’s begin a new journey and explore how you can “feel at ease” in your relationships.
Dissociation & Dissociative Disorder | “When my mind fragmented adapted to pain and chaos prevention strategy kicked in.”
Take a blindfold and place it on your eyes... Can you see? Dissociation is a neurobiological adaption to traumatic experiences. It is a genius and effective way to dull out memories, deny bad things, reduce overstimulation and build inner walls that protect parts of us from “what happened”. The catch is that we will suffer anxiety, disconnection and live indefinitely fearful.
Dissociation is a treatable condition. Learn more about dissociative symptoms.
Chronic Pain & Somatic Symptoms | “when words are just not enough: my body feels haunted and my mind speaks in sensations”
Traditionally labeled as “conversion disorder” yet completely misunderstood and stigmatized in medicine. Chronic pain and somatic symptoms are the mind’s way of literally “converting” intense emotions into felt sensations that live far beyond stressful events. To convert means “to hide away” from plain sight and it is undoubtably a genius strategy when our words are simply not enough, criticized or chronically denied.
Through Somatic Therapy, we can begin the journey of translating and releasing what has been muted and left nonverbal for decades.
Addictive Behaviors | “When I run out of options.”
A planned flight response away from suffering or a brilliant strategy to feel something positive? Either way, addictive behaviors are last resort options to cope with stress, emotional dysregulation and traumatic memories. Sadly, we are socialized to pathologize and shame ourselves within seconds of getting the relief these behaviors offer. In turn, this serves as a feedback loop that merely increases the need to escape and seek comfort.
What if we took a different approach to treating addictive responses? Let’s begin to understand their purpose in keeping us safe so that we can unlock the hidden doorways to recovery.
OCD Symptoms | “It’s like my brain is starving for control.”
What if we think outside the box when it comes to Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms? What if we looked deeper at the root causes of these repetitive patterns? And, what if OCD patterns are merely a congregation of many competing survival parts within us? A part who is utterly fearful of uncertainty and lack of control, another part who uses compulsions to tame those fears, a third part who forgets or discards reassurance, a forth part who stays preoccupied with mental rituals to avoid negative emotions etc...
Let’s consider the protection of OCD and address the root causes of this autopilot nervous system response!
First Responder & Military Trauma | “I’ve seen too much and I can’t go back to not having witnessed.”
There's a cost to helping and protecting others. Sooner or later, we are faced with vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue or simply burn out. The real challenge is overcoming your pre-programmed inner response that says “keep going, you can give more”.
Let’s build a new kind of hero for the next generation to look up to.
