Heal Your Heart with Counseling

Overcome Abuse and Trauma with Online Sessions

Integrative Counseling for
Emotional Wellness

Building emotional security, increasing self-compassion, and improving your ability to form close relationships are powerful tools in life. Specifically, trauma-focused therapy and recovery coaching can help you let go of past pain by reconnecting you with your inner strength and resilience.

PROFESSIONAL COUNSELOR

Stacy Williams, LPC

Stacy Williams is a specialist with extensive experience in guiding individuals through life's challenges and helping them find meaning in adversity. She focuses on assisting clients dealing with narcissistic abuse, anxiety, codependency, intergenerational trauma, and C-PTSD. Stacy employs an eclectic, trauma-focused approach to not only alleviate symptoms but empower clients to lead fulfilling lives.

With a strong background in working with adults grappling with trauma, attachment issues, and mental health concerns, Stacy has honed her expertise in trauma, childhood abuse, codependency, and attachment issues. She is well-versed in therapy modalities such as EMDR, Brainspotting, Hypnotherapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, and Somatic Therapy, as well as holding certifications in Yoga Therapy and Mindfulness studies. Stacy incorporates evidence-based approaches that focus on the whole person, incorporating attachment science, the nervous system, and inner child healing in therapy sessions to facilitate profound healing within the safety of the therapeutic relationship.

MEET YOUR COUNSELOR

“As traumatized children we always dreamed that someone would come and save us. We never dreamed it would, in fact, be ourselves as adults.”

— Alice Little

BREAKING ABUSE CYCLES IS COURAGEOUS

Are Old Wounds Keeping You Stuck?

Emotional wellness and intelligence can provide you with relief from symptoms and struggles associated with emotional wounds from abusive, addicted, emotionally immature and narcissistic parents.

Even if you had a difficult childhood, you can still find unconditional love through self-acceptance and compassion.

Symptoms of Emotional Trauma and C-PTSD

  • Struggles with Emotional Regulation

    Emotional dysregulation refers to the difficulty in effectively managing the intensity or duration of emotional responses, particularly those associated with vulnerable emotions, such as anger, jealousy, fear, or love. Individuals grappling with emotional dysregulation often have a background of emotional invalidation during childhood, which may or may not involve other forms of abuse.

    Childhood trauma can profoundly affect emotional development in adulthood, leading to difficulties in regulating emotions and feeling stuck in the past. This phenomenon, known as "arrested development," refers to the impairment of emotional maturity due to trauma. Recognizing and addressing the effects of childhood trauma is crucial for promoting healing and emotional well-being.

  • Hypervigilance

    If you have experienced trauma in the past, you may still be struggling to cope in the present. When faced with trauma, your mind and body work together to prioritize your physical safety, resulting in heightened alertness and sensitivity to potential threats.

    This heightened state of vigilance can lead to a constant feeling of being on guard and anticipating danger, known as hypervigilance. Symptoms of hypervigilance can manifest in various behavioral ways, such as agitation, heightened reactions to sounds, difficulty focusing on others, sleep disturbances, and engaging in argumentative or combative behavior, making it challenging to navigate daily life.

  • Negative Self-View & Severe Inner Critic

    Children who experience consistent negative reactions from a caregiver can develop a harsh inner critic that aims to eliminate perceived flaws in pursuit of love. This can lead to feelings of shame, self-hatred, and a fear of abandonment, fostering perfectionism and self-destructive behaviors. Individuals with Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder may struggle with toxic shame and guilt, causing them to fluctuate between self-loathing and disdain towards others, ultimately leading to feelings of loneliness and isolation.

    The harsh inner critic is an adaptive strategy formed in response to neglect or abuse in childhood, serving as a way to seek love and approval from caregivers. This critical voice follows you into adulthood, affecting relationships and self-perception, especially in triggering situations reminiscent of past trauma.

  • Relationship Difficulties

    Individuals who have experienced trauma or have Complex PTSD may struggle in relationships due to challenges related to intimacy, abandonment, criticism, and feelings of lack of control. These difficulties can make it hard for them to trust others. Many individuals with trauma histories have endured ongoing traumatic experiences during their developmental years, often involving abuse and betrayal by caregivers. These experiences can condition their brains to fear additional trauma, resulting in trust issues and a cautious approach to intimacy in adulthood.

    Healthy relationships are crucial for emotional support and navigating life's challenges. Symptoms like skepticism and fear of abandonment can strain relationships, but healing is achievable.

  • Dissociation or Depersonalization

    Dissociation is a key aspect of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Individuals who have experienced trauma often experience persistent depersonalization, feeling disconnected from themselves, or derealization, perceiving their surroundings as unreal. They may also struggle with dissociative amnesia, making it difficult to remember certain aspects of the trauma, as well as identity confusion, feeling as though the trauma has shattered their sense of self.

    Symptoms such as obsessive worry, rumination, and catastrophizing can also be indicators of dissociation. These symptoms can significantly impact an individual's daily functioning and overall well-being.

GET STARTED

Book a free call.

Even if you’re uncertain, please book a 15-minute chat. This is an opportunity to explore the types of support that are available to you. If we agree that we are a good fit, then we’ll schedule your first online session.

What Clients Are Saying:

  • “Stacy has been an integral part of my transformation and healing. She has been a guide and container through life changing transitions including career, marriage and becoming a mother and has helped me learn to hold it all with more peace, ease and joy. Her approach allowed me to embody my healing for the first time - to move from just knowing it with my mind to actually putting it into practice and interrupting the long held unconscious beliefs that were keeping me small. She helped me feel seen and known in a real way for the first time in my life. This deep witnessing of my truths, fears and stories changed me. It allowed me to witness myself and bring compassion and love to the parts of me who believed I was bad or that it was my job to make sure everyone else was ok.” -H.M.

  • “Being a client of Stacy’s has greatly aided in my personal growth. Creating a genuinely accepting environment, Stacy has allowed me to express and explore myself. When I came into counseling, I was in a state of constant anxiety, with no self-trust. Stacy has helped me untangle the deep patterns and beliefs that influence me. I now have a greater capacity to hold myself with honesty and compassion. Because of this, I feel capable and engaged in my healing process.” -S.B.

  • “Stacy completely transformed my life. I came from a background of neglect, emotional abuse, anxiety, and depression. I grew up in a home with alcoholic and narcissistic parents. When I met Stacy, I was in a dark place, repeating the patterns of my childhood programming. I had low self-esteem, a mean inner critic, body image issues, and no self-worth. Stacy helped me work through my childhood traumas and understand my inherent worth. Our work together helped me change my worldview, and I can't imagine returning. I feel grateful and blessed to have found Stacy.” -A.K.