Trauma isn’t the event that happens; it’s how we respond in order to survive the event. Complex trauma occurs when impactful events are repeated over time – often in childhood.  This compounds the base trauma making it easier to be wounded in the future and more difficult to heal.

We have two needs when we are born: to be attached to trusted adults and to be true to ourselves (authentic). In order to survive we absolutely require attachment – someone to care for our physical and emotional needs. In early development our biology will choose attachment over authenticity.

Our modern, fast-paced culture only serves to reinforce attachment over authenticity and we may internalize the message that in order to be accepted we must be someone other than who we are. This can be conveyed to us without malice and can even begin at birth! At a minimum, this leads to disconnection from self which can set the foundation for repeated wounding (trauma).

I help you on your journey to your true self by guiding you gently in a way that allows you to peel and process the layers of triggers that have accumulated since childhood. There is hope. As Peter Levine, the founder of Somatic Experiencing, says “Trauma is a fact of life, but it doesn’t have to be a life sentence”.