THERAPY FOR CHILDHOOD TRAUMA in San Francisco

People who experienced childhood trauma may have grown up in a family with neglect, abuse, abandonment, mental illness, or substance use. The experiences we have in early life often become the “blueprint” for how we experience ourselves, others, and the world around us. Because trauma threatens our sense of physical or emotional safety, it can leave us feeling insecure, fearful or hurt, and we adapt to our feelings and circumstances through various ways of coping. Even if the trauma occurred in the past, it can be difficult to shed the behaviors and responses we previously used to cope.

If you’ve experienced childhood trauma, you may find yourself engaging in some of these patterns:

  • Minimizing your own needs and wants in relationships

  • Shutting down or withdrawing when faced with confrontation or conflict

  • People-pleasing tendencies, prioritizing taking care of others over yourself

  • Responding to others with anger, reactivity, or self-sabotage

  • Struggling with intimacy and love with your partner or friends

  • Believing yourself to be unworthy of love or connection

  • Self-soothing through alcohol, drugs, eating, or sex

All of these patterns make sense in the context of childhood trauma, and the behaviors and responses we use to adapt to a threatening situation demonstrate the resilience of humankind. At the same time, some of these patterns may no longer serve you, and may create further hurt in your relationships. Therapy helps you understand the impact of trauma on your well-being, establish new ways of coping, and create emotional safety in yourself and your relationships.

TOOLS IN THERAPY FOR CHILDHOOD TRAUMA

  • Identify and cope with emotional triggers

  • Model and teach effective communication skills

  • Understand your beliefs, emotions, and behaviors through a trauma lens

  • Create a family tree to explore intergenerational patterns, family roles, and relationship dynamics

  • Support you in learning and asserting your wants and needs in relationships

  • Reframe unhelpful beliefs to see youreslf and the world through a secure lens

  • Practice different responses in your relationships to replace old ways of relating

  • Increase awareness of positive feedback loops to break unhelpful cycles

  • Teach self-compassion and self-soothing techniques

In therapy, I provide context for your emotions and behaviors, and help you experience yourself and others in more secure ways.

If this resonates with you, I encourage you to reach out for support. I offer a free 20-minute consultation, and will either provide you therapy services or refer you to another therapist if I think they would be a better fit.