Trauma Therapy Approaches: EMDR, Somatic Experiencing & IFS-Informed Parts Work
My approach to trauma therapy integrates EMDR, Somatic Experiencing®, and IFS-Informed Parts Work to address the emotional, relational, and nervous system patterns that can keep us feeling stuck. Depending on your needs, we may draw primarily from one approach or integrate elements of all three to support deeper, lasting change.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a trauma therapy that helps the brain process experiences that may still feel unresolved or emotionally “stuck.” Even when we know something is in the past, certain memories, triggers, or beliefs can continue to bring up the same fear, shame, or emotional intensity as if they were happening now.
EMDR uses bilateral stimulation, such as guided eye movements, while gently working with memories, emotions, body sensations, and beliefs connected to difficult experiences. This process helps the brain integrate what happened in a way that feels more like something that happened in the past, rather than something your nervous system is still responding to in the present.
EMDR can be used not only for trauma and PTSD, but also for experiences that contribute to anxiety, low self-esteem, relationship patterns, and deeply held negative beliefs about yourself.
The goal isn't to erase the memory or convince yourself that what happened was okay. It's to help the memory carry less emotional weight, so the past has less power over how you feel and respond today.
Somatic Experiencing
Sometimes we can understand our experiences intellectually, while our bodies continue responding as though the threat is still present. Somatic Experiencing® (SE) is a body-based approach that helps us work with the ways trauma and chronic stress can impact the nervous system.
Somatic Experiencing focuses on creating a sense of safety in the body first. Before approaching difficult memories or emotions, we work on helping your nervous system feel more grounded and supported in the here and now. This might include noticing sensations, slowing things down, and learning how to return to a sense of calm or relative safety when emotions rise.
By building this foundation of relative safety, we can approach difficult experiences without pushing your system beyond what it can handle. Over time, this work can help your body begin to recognize that the past is no longer happening, allowing you to move through emotions, sensations, and triggers with greater flexibility and capacity.
The goal isn't to feel calm all the time, but to help your nervous system feel safer navigating stress, emotions, and difficult experiences.
IFS-Informed Parts Work
In therapy, you may notice that different “parts” of you want different things. One part wants to speak up, while another wants to shut down; one part craves connection, while another pulls away. Parts Work/Internal Family Systems (IFS) helps explore these inner dynamics with curiosity and compassion.
Rather than trying to think your way out of old patterns, Parts Work/IFS helps us understand the deeper emotional experiences and protective responses underneath them. Many of these patterns developed for a reason, often in response to experiences when your system learned what it needed to do to feel safe, connected, or protected.
Through IFS-Informed Parts Work, EMDR, Somatic Experiencing—or often a combination of these approaches—we can work with these deeper emotional learnings in a safe and supported way. This can create opportunities for memory reconsolidation, a process through which the brain can update old emotional learning with new information and experiences.
As these old patterns begin to shift, responses that once felt automatic may no longer carry the same intensity or feel as necessary in the present. Parts can begin to release outdated roles and burdens, creating more room for flexibility, connection, and choice.
Together, we work toward helping you feel less driven by old survival patterns and more connected to your core sense of Self.
Supporting Diversity and Empowerment.
As a therapist, I am committed to understanding how systemic oppression and discrimination shape my clients’ lives. I am LGBTQ+ affirming and neurodiversity-affirming, and I approach therapy with respect for the full context of your identities and lived experiences. Patterns and symptoms don’t develop in isolation. They form within relationships, systems, and environments. Because of that, I take seriously my responsibility to reflect on my own biases and privileges so I can show up with greater awareness and care in the therapy room.
I also believe humility is essential to good therapy. I don’t assume I know your experience— I want to understand it from your perspective. My hope is to create a space where you feel respected, taken seriously, and able to show up fully as yourself.
Training and Certifications
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EMDRIA Approved EMDR Training Certification, 2021
Attachment-based EMDR, 2022
Ego State Therapy Interventions for EMDR, 2024
EMDR and DBT for Interpersonal Trauma: An Integrated Toolkit to Treat Survivors of Physical, Emotional and Sexual Abuse, 2025
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IFS Inner Circle: Foundations of the IFS Model, 2023
IFS-Informed Clinician
Parts Work for Memory Reconsolidation, 2026
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Somatic Experiencing® Professional Training I, II, III, IV
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Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment (TIST): A Somatic Approach to Working with Parts, 2025
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Sexual Trauma Clinical Training: Interventions to Cultivate Safety, Release Shame, and Nurture Boundaries, 2025
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2-Day Intensive ACT Training, 2024
The Essential Acceptance & Commitment Therapy Course: The Core Components & Skills Made Simple, 2024
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CPI Training Certification, 2021 & 2024