Jen's Approach

I love learning new methods for healing trauma, learning to regulate, and getting unstuck from patterns and behaviors that we want to break out of. Since I have training in a variety of therapeutic areas, we can have conversations about which approaches you're most interested in. Specifically, I want my clients to consider what is the best fit for them so we can adjust treatment accordingly.

This page is still in development - more to come!

A lens that I bring into all of the therapy work that I do is polyvagal theory, which all about getting to know our nervous system. The vagus nerve is the largest nerve in the body, and it connects to almost every organ in the body. When we are impacted by stress or trauma and want to recover, understanding the vagus nerve, the different states of the nervous system, and how we move between them is a great place to start.

In practice, this looks like some psychoeducation about polyvagal theory (if you're interested), activities that help you get to know your nervous system states, and activities we can practice together to build your regulation.

I have attended several full-day trainings on polyvagal theory and integrate it into my daily life, as well as my daily practice.

EMDR is an evidenced-based practice for trauma recovery, and it also can help with other areas of feeling "stuck." At its core, EMDR is about getting to know what negative beliefs have resulted from trauma and reprocessing the memories or experiences that are tied to these beliefs to help you form and embrace new, more adaptive beliefs.

EMDR involves bilateral stimulation, meaning that we activate both sides of the body (eyes moving back and forth, holding "buzzies" that buzz back and forth, even walking!) in order to turn on our brain's information processing system. Following the evidenced-based procedures, we use the bilateral stimulation to target the memories and beliefs that you want to target to reduce the level of stress that your body experiences.

The coolest part of EMDR (in my opinion) is that YOUR mind does the work. While you need to do EMDR with someone who is trained to guide you through it, we keep in mind that the brain and body are always moving toward healing. We will first spend time building your resources and readiness for the trauma work. But when you are ready, it is amazing to watch how your mind wants to recover and move toward healthier beliefs through EMDR.

I completed the full, two-part EMDR training in 2023 through EMDR Consulting. I am currently working toward certification.

Every one of us has MANY parts of ourselves. We're aware of it, too! Many times we say, "A part of me wants to do ___, while another part of me doesn't." Parts work involves getting to know your various parts, while also getting to know the *self* (YOU) that leads your parts.

Internal Family System leans into the fact that many of our parts have ended up "burdened" with challenging or unhealthy roles. Many of these parts are just trying to help! For example, our anxious part might feel like it HAS to remind us of all the bad things that might happen to help us be more prepared.

Through parts work, we help our parts have a voice and be heard. As we get to know the parts and learn how to lead them, they can often move into healthier roles in our lives.

I have participated in a two-day training on IFS and actively continue reading and training on this theory.