Trauma and PTSD Therapy in Oklahoma and California
Trauma doesn't always look like flashbacks or nightmares. Sometimes it looks like being on edge all the time, feeling numb, or reacting to small things in ways that don't quite make sense to you. If that sounds familiar, you're not broken – your nervous system is doing exactly what it learned to do to protect you.
What This Helps With
Trauma and PTSD can show up in a lot of different ways. Common reasons people come in include:
- Flashbacks or intrusive memories that show up uninvited
- Hypervigilance, or feeling constantly on edge
- Emotional numbness or feeling disconnected from yourself or others
- Avoiding people, places, or situations that remind you of what happened
- A single traumatic event, or trauma that built up gradually over years
- Trauma that's affecting your ability to trust or feel safe in relationships
If Trusting Someone With This Feels Hard
If you've been hurt before, it makes complete sense that trusting someone new with what happened feels like a risk, that's not a character flaw, it's often exactly what your nervous system learned to do to protect you from further harm. Some people also carry family beliefs that minimize what happened to them, or that treat needing support as a weakness. And if you've spent years being the strong one, the one who doesn't need anything from anyone, letting someone in can feel unfamiliar in its own right. Whatever's made this hard to start, it doesn't mean you're not ready, or that it isn't worth addressing.
Why These Responses Happen
None of this means something is wrong with you. Your nervous system has two basic settings when it senses danger: fight or flight, and shutdown. If what happened to you felt impossible to fight or escape, your body may have learned to shut down instead, which can leave you feeling numb, disconnected, or stuck long after the danger has passed. Hypervigilance works the same way: your body stays braced for something that already happened, because some part of you hasn't gotten the message that it's over. Treatments like EMDR, which is recommended by organizations including the World Health Organization and NICE for treating PTSD, work by helping your nervous system finally finish processing what it couldn't process at the time.
What Trauma and PTSD Treatment Involves
I work with both single-incident trauma and the kind that builds up over years. Treatment often includes EMDR alongside more traditional talk therapy, and always starts with building safety and coping skills before we do any deeper processing work. We don't rush toward the hardest material before you're ready for it.
My Approach
With over 20 years in practice, I've worked with trauma in a lot of different forms. My approach is holistic – treating the mind, body, and spirit as connected, not separate – because trauma lives in the body as much as in the mind.
What to Expect
Early sessions focus on stabilization: understanding your triggers, building coping tools, and making sure you feel safe before we go further. From there, we move at your pace into the deeper work, using EMDR or other approaches depending on what you need.
What Becomes Possible
Over time, the nervous system settles. Triggers that used to derail your whole day start to lose their intensity. You stop feeling like you're constantly bracing for something. Many people describe finally feeling like the past is actually in the past, instead of something they're still living inside of.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between this page and the EMDR page?
EMDR is one specific tool I use for trauma and PTSD, but trauma treatment can also include other approaches. This page covers trauma work broadly. The EMDR page goes deeper into that specific method.
Do I need a PTSD diagnosis to start trauma therapy?
No, you don't need a formal diagnosis to benefit from trauma-focused work. If what you're carrying feels connected to something that happened to you, that's enough to start the conversation.
Will I have to relive the traumatic event?
Not in detail, and not before you're ready. We build safety and coping skills first.
How long does trauma therapy typically take?
It depends on what you're working through. A single event can sometimes resolve more quickly than trauma that built up over years. We'll talk honestly about pacing as we go.
What does trauma therapy cost?
Individual sessions are $175. I also offer a free 15-minute phone consultation if you'd like to talk through your situation before booking a first session. Full rate and insurance details are on the Contact & Rates page.
Is what I share in session confidential?
Yes. What you share in session stays confidential, with the standard legal exceptions around safety that apply to any licensed therapist.