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When The Past Won't Let Go
Sometimes things that happen are obviously trauma: the car crash, the dad who raged at 2 a.m., the day you woke up in the ER and thought, ‘This is it'.
Other times it’s quieter: the years you felt invisible at the dinner table, the parent who never really saw you, the drip-drip-drip of being criticized until you went numb. Either way, your body does the same thing. It builds walls. It slams on the brakes. The painful memories get shoved into the wrong “file cabinet" in your brain. But here's the problem: your brain doesn't like thigs to be mis-filed, so it keeps rifling through drawers trying to put the experiences somewhere that makes sense. That's why the past keeps crashing into your present. For instance, you’re grocery shopping and get that gut-punch of dread, or you’re doing the dishes and suddenly you’re back in that hospital room. It’s relentless because your brain is trying to help you, it just hasn’t figured out how yet. Until it gets the right kind of help, it just keeps hitting repeat. You may have tried everything to make it stop: years of therapy, a shelf full of self-help books, meditation apps. Even a personal development seminar or two where you swore "This time it will be different". And still, the past intrudes, uninvited, into your everyday life. No wonder you’re exhausted and frustrated. Events That Can Lead to PTSD or C-PTSD
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The Many Ways PTSD Can Take Over
When experiences like these aren’t fully processed, they don’t stay in the past, they follow you.
You might feel emotionally numb, flat, or disconnected from joy.
Or you might feel too much: waves of panic, sudden tears, dread that comes out of nowhere.
Your thoughts may loop endlessly, replaying old conversations, reliving scenes you wish you could erase, or running through worst-case scenarios on repeat.
You might find yourself startling at small sounds, scanning rooms for exits, obsessively trying to control outcomes so nothing can hurt you again, checking or re-checking things to soothe anxiety, avoiding places, people, or situations that remind you of what happened.
Relationships can feel unsafe... even the good ones. You may either cling tightly or pull away completely. Trusting others feels risky, and trusting yourself feels impossible.
Your body often carries the weight too. Chronic pain, recurring injuries, headaches, digestive issues, fatigue, autoimmune flares, or a nervous system that never seems to settle.
You might feel emotionally numb, flat, or disconnected from joy.
Or you might feel too much: waves of panic, sudden tears, dread that comes out of nowhere.
Your thoughts may loop endlessly, replaying old conversations, reliving scenes you wish you could erase, or running through worst-case scenarios on repeat.
You might find yourself startling at small sounds, scanning rooms for exits, obsessively trying to control outcomes so nothing can hurt you again, checking or re-checking things to soothe anxiety, avoiding places, people, or situations that remind you of what happened.
Relationships can feel unsafe... even the good ones. You may either cling tightly or pull away completely. Trusting others feels risky, and trusting yourself feels impossible.
Your body often carries the weight too. Chronic pain, recurring injuries, headaches, digestive issues, fatigue, autoimmune flares, or a nervous system that never seems to settle.
How I Work with PTSD and Trauma
There are many ways to approach trauma: EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, Internal Family Systems (Parts Work), Hypnosis, Eidetic Imagery, and more.
Research consistently shows that experiential therapies work best for PTSD and C-PTSD, not just talk therapy. When we combine these approaches, we reach the deepest layers of the mind where those old stories are still running on a loop.
My work is gentle but powerful. We move at the pace your nervous system can handle, so you never feel pushed or overwhelmed.
One of my favorite tools is hypnosis combined with imagery work, because it bypasses the rational, logical mind and goes straight to the subconscious. And your subconscious knows exactly what it needs to heal.
Schedule a free 30-minute consultation. We’ll discuss your situation and see whether working together feels like the right next step.
Research consistently shows that experiential therapies work best for PTSD and C-PTSD, not just talk therapy. When we combine these approaches, we reach the deepest layers of the mind where those old stories are still running on a loop.
My work is gentle but powerful. We move at the pace your nervous system can handle, so you never feel pushed or overwhelmed.
One of my favorite tools is hypnosis combined with imagery work, because it bypasses the rational, logical mind and goes straight to the subconscious. And your subconscious knows exactly what it needs to heal.
Schedule a free 30-minute consultation. We’ll discuss your situation and see whether working together feels like the right next step.
Safety Comes First
The first rule is do no harm. That means we go at a pace your nervous system can handle. We're never re-traumatizing you just to “get to the root of things.”
Sadly, many of my clients come to me after working with therapists or coaches who rushed the process... or didn’t know how to safely manage big emotional states. It can be discouraging, and even scary when that happens.
But when trauma work is done well, it feels safe and steady. You stay present, you stay resourced, and you leave the session feeling lighter - not shattered. This is the environment I create for every client... one where your system can finally exhale and begin to heal.
Sadly, many of my clients come to me after working with therapists or coaches who rushed the process... or didn’t know how to safely manage big emotional states. It can be discouraging, and even scary when that happens.
But when trauma work is done well, it feels safe and steady. You stay present, you stay resourced, and you leave the session feeling lighter - not shattered. This is the environment I create for every client... one where your system can finally exhale and begin to heal.
Meet Your New Therapist
Recommended Listening: Somatic & IFS Trauma Work Explained
This podcast episode features Sarah Baldwin, a fellow trauma specialist whose approach aligns closely with the work I do. I’m sharing it here because she explains these concepts brilliantly, and it’s a great way to deepen your understanding before you and I begin working together.
I work virtually with people nationwide.