Trauma Therapy for Adults in California
I work with adults carrying experiences that haven’t settled — recent or decades old, dramatic or quiet. Sessions are by telehealth, anywhere in California.
I work with adults carrying experiences that haven’t settled — recent or decades old, dramatic or quiet. Sessions are by telehealth, anywhere in California.
What I mean by trauma
The word gets used two ways. Clinically it describes something specific. Colloquially it stretches to cover anything hard. Neither definition is much use when you’re trying to decide whether to call someone.
Here’s the version I work from: if something that happened to you is still shaping how you feel, react, or sleep — and time hasn’t touched it — that’s worth working on. It doesn’t have to be dramatic. It doesn’t have to be a diagnosis. Plenty of people I work with spent years assuming what happened to them “wasn’t bad enough” to count.
It counts if it’s still with you.
Timing matters more than most people realize. For most species, the best window is late fall through early spring, when the tree is dormant, the structure is visible without leaves, and disease pressure is low. Oaks are the exception worth knowing about — pruning them in spring and early summer raises the risk of oak wilt, which is present in New Jersey and can kill a mature oak in a single season. Given how much of Ocean County is oak, we schedule that work for the dormant months unless a limb is an active hazard.
Who I work with
Individual adults. Some situations that come up often:
A single event. A car accident, an assault, a medical emergency, a sudden loss. Something with a clear before and after.
Something older, surfacing now. Often after a life change — a new baby, a death, a diagnosis. You’d thought it was behind you.
What talk therapy hasn’t reached. You understand your history. You can explain it clearly. It hasn’t changed how you feel.
Grief that hasn’t moved.
Specific fears. Flying, driving, needles, public speaking.
How I work
I’m trained in two approaches, both of which use eye movements to help the brain process a memory differently, and both of which reduce how much you need to say out loud.
EMDR is the more established of the two, with a substantial research base and a structured eight-phase protocol. → Read more
Accelerated Resolution Therapy is newer and works directly with the images memory holds. → Read more
Which one we use depends on you. I’ve written about how they differ and how I choose. → Read the comparison
What sessions look like
Sessions are 50 minutes, by video, usually weekly to start.
The first session is orientation — what brings you in, what you’ve tried, what you want to be different. We don’t start processing on day one.
You will not be asked to give me a detailed account of what happened. That’s not a concession I make for reluctant clients; it’s how both of these approaches are built.
When this isn't the right fit
I’d rather be direct than have you find out three sessions in.
I don’t work with couples or families — individual adults only. I don’t prescribe and I’m not a physician; if medication is part of the picture, you’ll need a psychiatrist or your primary care doctor alongside this.
If you’re in active crisis, or if substance use is the immediate problem, you likely need a higher level of care than weekly telehealth. I’m glad to point you somewhere useful.
And if you’re looking for open-ended talk therapy — a steady place to think out loud over years — that’s valuable, but it isn’t what I do.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to describe what happened?
No. Both approaches are built to work without a detailed verbal account.
Do you take insurance?
I’m out of network. I provide superbills for reimbursement. → More on fees
How long does this take?
It varies more than anyone selling you something will admit. Some people notice change quickly; others work longer. I’ll give you an honest read after a few sessions.