Specialties and Expertise

Trauma Healing

Trauma can mean so many different things. It can refer to the experiences and impacts of one specific event, a relationship or series of relationships, a complex family situation, or former or ongoing oppression.

 

Trauma can show up in many ways, impacting bodies, emotions, task completion, organization, sense of time and space, relationships, sense of purpose, ability to create and relate, and so much more. This includes a PTSD diagnosis, C-PTSD label, developmental trauma, and the many ways you might be and feel impacted in the world and in yourself from recent, ongoing, or historical experience with traumatic events, relationships, family histories and stories, and community histories and stories. I incorporate a holistic trauma-aware approach that includes your body, your communities and relationships, and our own relationship together as we move through surviving, functioning, thriving, and connecting to yourself and others..

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Sometimes folks grow up in or or are connected to settings different from their chosen and mainstream communities, cultures, or environments and, leave, have left or want to change their relationships with these settings. This could mean communes, isolated communities, boarding schools or group environments, organized and high-control settings, family environments, immersive relationships, "cults", and other groups that leave people feeling different than "the norm" or often making significant adjustments when a separation occurs. They could be safe or unsafe, and welcome/needed/unexpected exits. Together, we can explore and address connecting to both others and yourself before, during, and after these transitions or changes.

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Sexuality, Gender, and Relationship Diversity

Informed therapy focused on whatever you want to focus on in therapy, that welcomes how you play and relate and identify. Along with supporting sexual expressions of all kinds in therapy, I am a sex educator and long time advocate for sexual expression and exploration. In therapy, we can navigate your relationships with sexuality, acknowledge and examine your own expansive sexual world, and address internal and external stigma and expectations. Folks from all corners of the rainbows and umbrellas are welcome, including people in the LGBTQIAA2S+ spectrum, trans and non-binary folks, non-monogamy and polyamory, sex work, BDSM and kink (edge play, power dynamics, etc) and identity-based communities (furries, littles, pets, etc.)  Some identities and activities have more stigma, worries, and judgments than others, and non-judgmental therapy can address any challenges and judgments from the outside world as well as those that may come from inside us.

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This is also a space to explore and include non-BDSM and non-sexuality or identity related psychotherapy for folks in these communities. Healing deepens when we can acknowledge and communicate about who we are, when it is relevant, and when it is less so.

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Support Around Mental Health Needs of Others

Sometimes our parents, families, partners, friends, and important people in our communities have mental health needs that can be really big, or can interact with our own. These relationships can be complex and require support, coping skills, managing guilt and shame, referrals and resources, and navigating needs and boundaries of all involved.

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Harm Reduction: Navigating Substances and Other Outlets

Relationships with the outlets you have and the ways they show up can fluctuate over time. This can include  a substance like alcohol or drugs, or other things that become important to you and take special space in your life, like video games, sexual communities, and creative practices.

 

Sometimes these things are welcome and contribute to your world, and we can explore opportunities to deepen your relationship with them. Have fun with what you love! This can include working through stigma, talking to friends and family, and addressing cultural histories and challenges like the appropriation of many medicine journeys, gender and race in gaming, and other access and privilege barriers.

 

Sometimes our outlets can start to feel like they aren't contributing the same way. You might worry you are losing control, or feel judged by others, or find that your practices aren't working for you the way they used to. Maybe alcohol doesn't feel relaxing any more, drug trips leave you feeling depleted, or video game campaigns lead to anxiety and exhaustion. These shifts can relate to and impact how we manage stress, relationships, and other tasks. We can include harm reduction techniques to help you reconnect to yourself and re-frame your relationships with these outlets to fit your current world.

 

I am also familiar with 12-step models and we can include those practices with you if you have found they work for you.

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