Heal From Trauma with EMDR (Tacoma, Gig Harbor & Seattle)

I am so grateful to offer EMDR therapy for women to treat underlying trauma. If you are struggling, know that you are not alone! I have helped many women conquer trauma symptoms once and for all. Do you struggle with never feeling good enough despite everything you do? Do you feel disconnected from friends and family and foggy-brained? Or overwhelmed with intrusive thoughts? Do you feel frustrated by your knee-jerk reactions? You want to feel better and go out more, but you worry about judgement from others. You often end up isolating from friends and avoiding fun experiences. You feel like a failure. If this resonates with you, you will likely benefit from trauma-focused counseling.

You don’t have to carry the weight of the past alone. You might benefit from EMDR therapy if you:

• You keep replaying something painful from the past in your mind, even when you try not to.

• You feel anxious in public places, crowded rooms, or unfamiliar settings—even without a clear reason.

• You over-prepare, overthink, or obsess about safety or “what could go wrong.”

• You replay past decisions or interactions and feel overwhelming guilt or embarrassment.

• You push people away or don’t allow yourself to receive support, believing you don’t deserve it.

• You keep yourself constantly busy or distracted to avoid thinking or feeling.

• You engage in self-sabotaging behaviors (e.g., procrastination, people-pleasing, isolating).

• You cope with overwhelming feelings through food, alcohol, work, or excessive control (e.g., rigid routines or perfectionism).

• You have trouble falling or staying asleep, or you wake up feeling unrested and on edge.

How EMDR Helps Heal Trauma

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is extremely effective in treating adults who have experienced trauma. EMDR is a powerful, research-backed therapy that helps the brain heal from trauma—without needing to relive every detail. When we experience overwhelming events, those memories can get “stuck,” causing distressing symptoms like anxiety, flashbacks, low self-worth, or emotional numbness.

EMDR works by gently activating the brain’s natural healing process through guided eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation. This allows the brain to reprocess painful memories, so they no longer feel as intense, overwhelming, or defining.

Instead of just talking about what happened, EMDR helps shift how you feel about it—reducing emotional triggers, transforming negative beliefs (like “I’m not safe” or “It was my fault” to “I am safe” and “I am worthy”), and helping you reconnect with a sense of calm, control, and self-worth.

With EMDR, healing is not about forgetting the past—it’s about freeing yourself from its grip.

Changes from EMDR Treatment for Trauma

Thanks to research which has demonstrated the brain’s neuroplasticity, we now know that the brain has a natural ability to change, adapt, and rewire itself—even after difficult experiences or trauma. It means that your brain is not fixed or “stuck” the way it is; it’s always capable of learning new patterns, forming new connections, and healing old ones.

Healing from trauma is possible. EMDR therapy doesn’t just reduce symptoms—it can transform the way you think, feel, and relate to yourself and the world. While everyone’s experience is unique, many people notice specific, meaningful shifts after working through trauma with EMDR.

Here are some of the most common changes clients report:

• You feel calmer in situations that used to trigger anxiety, fear, or panic.

• You begin to respond rather than react.

• Harsh inner criticism softens. You are able to be self-compassionate instead of self-blaming.

• Memories that once felt vivid, distressing, or overwhelming begin to lose their emotional charge.

• Things that used to set you off don’t have the same effect anymore.

• You stop repeating the same self-sabotaging behaviors (e.g., pushing people away, staying in toxic relationships, perfectionism, emotional eating).

• You feel safer being vulnerable, setting boundaries, and asking for what you need.

• You no longer define your worth based on how others treat you.

• You feel more in control of your emotions instead of your emotions controlling you.