Therapy for Complex + Developmental Trauma

Not all trauma comes from a single event. For many people, trauma develops gradually through repeated experiences of emotional neglect, chronic criticism, inconsistent caregiving, family conflict, or relationships that leave them feeling unseen, unsupported, or unsafe. These experiences can shape the way you relate to yourself, others, and the world long after childhood has ended.

If you've ever wondered why you struggle with self-worth, people pleasing, perfectionism, anxiety, or relationships despite being successful in many areas of your life, complex trauma may help explain what you're experiencing.

Connect With Me

You learned to disconnect to survive. It’s time to learn how to reconnect.

Complex trauma, sometimes referred to as Complex PTSD (CPTSD), developmental trauma, or relational trauma, develops through repeated experiences that overwhelm a person's sense of safety, connection, or emotional support.

Unlike trauma that results from a single event, complex trauma often develops over time, particularly within important relationships during childhood or adolescence.

These experiences may include:

  • Emotional neglect

  • Chronic criticism or shame

  • Growing up with emotionally unavailable caregivers

  • Parentification

  • Neurodivergence + Masking

  • Emotional invalidation

  • Ongoing family conflict

  • Living with addiction or mental illness in the home

  • Bullying

  • Religious trauma

  • Emotional or psychological abuse

  • Medical trauma

  • Witnessing violence

  • Unpredictable caregiving

Many people minimize these experiences because they believe their childhood "wasn't that bad."

The reality is that trauma is not defined only by what happened. It is also shaped by what was missing, including safety, emotional attunement, consistency, protection, and connection.

Symptoms in Relationships

  • Fear of abandonment

  • Difficulty trusting others

  • Attracting emotionally unavailable partners

  • People pleasing

  • Difficulty setting healthy boundaries

  • Feeling responsible for other people's emotions

  • Fear of conflict

  • Difficulty asking for help

  • Chronic doubt

  • Frequent reassurance seeking

  • Trouble showing up authentically and expressing needs

Emotional Symptoms

  • Anxiety

  • Chronic shame

  • Harsh self-criticism

  • Emotional numbness

  • Difficulty identifying emotions

  • Feeling "too much" or "not enough"

  • Persistent guilt

  • Feeling disconnected from yourself

  • Burnout + overworking

  • Perfectionism

  • Difficulty making decisions

  • Trouble relaxing or experiencing pleasure/joy

How Complex Trauma Impacts the Nervous System

Our brains and nervous systems are remarkably adaptive.

When we're exposed to chronic stress or emotional disconnection, we naturally develop strategies to protect ourselves.

Those strategies might look like:

  • Fixation on productivity / staying busy

  • Eating disorders or disordered eating

  • Compulsive exercise or exercise abuse

  • Substance abuse

  • Doom scrolling

  • Becoming highly independent

  • Avoiding vulnerability

  • People pleasing

  • Perfectionism

  • Overthinking

  • Emotional shutdown

  • Caretaking for everyone around you

These patterns once served an important purpose, so our work together isn’t about “getting rid of them.” Instead, I’ll support you to relate to yourself with more curiosity, and developing a greater sense of both agency and internal trust so you have more choices in how you respond to and care for yourself and others.

My Approach to Healing Complex Trauma

Healing from complex trauma isn't about forcing yourself to relive painful memories.

Instead, therapy together will focus on helping you understand the relationship between your nervous system, emotions, beliefs, relationships, and survival patterns.

The therapy I’m passionate about is collaborative, compassionate, and individualized to each client.

I integrate approaches such as:

  • NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM®)

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)

  • Attachment-based therapy

  • Somatic awareness

  • Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

  • Mindfulness

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

  • Relational therapy

Is This the Right Approach for Your Healing?

We May be a good fit if…

  1. You’ve done a lot of self-work already, but keep finding yourself in the same patterns, especially in relationships.

  2. You want to understand your nervous system and the experiences underneath your symptoms, not just learn another way to manage them.

  3. You’re ready to slow down and build a relationship with yourself that feels more curious, compassionate, and connected.

This may not be the right fit if…

  1. You’re looking for a brief, highly structured approach focused on processing one specific incident or reducing symptoms quickly.

  2. You’re looking for a therapist to direct each session or tell you what to do, rather than exploring things collaboratively.

  3. You’re looking for therapy that focuses primarily on symptom relief rather than deeper exploration and self-understanding.

Frequently Asked Questions

Still have questions? Take a look at the FAQ, and don’t hesitate to reach out when you’re ready to chat more!

Contact Me
Contact Me

  • Yes. PTSD often develops after a single traumatic event. Complex trauma develops through repeated or chronic experiences, particularly within relationships, and often affects identity, emotional regulation, and interpersonal functioning.

  • No. Therapy does not require you to recall every detail of your past. We work at a pace that feels safe and collaborative while focusing on how past experiences continue to influence your life today.

  • If you recognize yourself in many of the patterns described on this page, therapy may be a helpful place to explore your experiences with curiosity and support.

  • Complex trauma is not only about what happened to you; it can also be about what you consistently did not receive. Many people with developmental trauma grew up in environments where their emotional needs, sense of safety, autonomy, or ability to be fully themselves were not consistently supported.

    You may have had loving caregivers and still experienced relational wounds. Therapy can help you explore the patterns you developed to survive, adapt, and maintain connection, without needing to label your past as “bad enough” to deserve support.

  • Many people with complex trauma have developed strong insight into their experiences but still find themselves repeating familiar patterns in relationships, self-worth, emotional regulation, or boundaries. This is because developmental trauma is often held not only as a story we remember, but as patterns in how we relate to ourselves and others.

    Healing is not just about understanding why something happened. It also involves building a different relationship with yourself, increasing capacity for connection, and developing greater freedom in how you respond to life.

You don’t have to keep carrying patterns that were created to help you survive.

Healing from complex trauma is not about blaming your past or becoming a different person. The process of healing will help you to understand yourself with more compassion, build a stronger internal connection with yourself, and create more freedom and flexibility in how you relate to yourself and others.

If you’re ready to explore whether therapy or supervision with me may be a good fit for you, I invite you to schedule a consultation.

Schedule a Consultation