SPECIALTY CARE
Trauma & PTSD
Healing from trauma involves more than talking about what happened.
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Trauma can leave lasting effects on the mind, body, emotions, and relationships. You may feel constantly on edge, disconnected from yourself or others, overwhelmed by memories, or stuck in patterns that no longer serve you. Even when you know you're safe, your nervous system may continue responding as though danger is still present.
Our approach
Care built on curiosity, respect, and hope
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At Palim Health, we provide compassionate, evidence-based trauma therapy, helping your mind and body learn that the trauma is no longer happening.
Whether you've experienced a single traumatic event, childhood trauma, complex trauma, or ongoing adversity, our team’s goal is to help you move beyond surviving toward living with greater safety, flexibility, and connection.
Trauma affects every person differently. Some individuals benefit from directly processing traumatic memories, while others first need to establish a greater sense of safety, stability, and emotional regulation. Our clinicians work collaboratively with you to determine the approach and pace that best fits your needs.
Access care in person or from anywhere in California by telehealth.
Treatment may include one or more evidence-based therapies, including:
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE)
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Somatic Experiencing (SE)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Psychodynamic psychotherapy
Rather than following a one-size-fits-all model, we integrate these approaches thoughtfully to support your unique recovery.
Conditions & experiences
We work with individuals experiencing:
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You do not need to have a PTSD diagnosis to benefit from trauma therapy.
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Complex trauma
Childhood abuse or neglect
Sexual assault
Medical trauma
Military trauma
Difficulty trusting other
Chronic stress
First responder trauma
Relationship violence
Anxiety and panic
Depression
Chronic shame or self-criticism
Dissociation
Emotional numbness
Nervous system dysregulation
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Individual Therapy
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Individual therapy provides a collaborative space to process traumatic experiences, reduce distress, strengthen coping skills, and reconnect with your values and goals.
Our providers who support individuals who have experienced trauma have a high level of specialty training and therefore will often integrate multiple approaches into treatment, as indicated, so that care is highly individualized.
Such approaches may include Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. These therapies are often integrated with somatic interventions, addressing the impacts of trauma on both the mind and body.
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CPT is one of the most extensively researched treatments for PTSD. It helps individuals identify and examine beliefs that developed following traumatic experiences, reducing feelings of guilt, shame, self-blame, and fear while fostering healthier and more balanced ways of understanding themselves and the world.
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PE helps individuals gradually approach trauma-related memories, emotions, and situations that have become associated with fear or avoidance. Through this process, many people experience reduced PTSD symptoms, increased confidence, and greater freedom to engage in the activities and relationships that matter most.
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EMDR is an evidence-based therapy that helps the brain reprocess distressing memories so they become less emotionally overwhelming. By integrating traumatic memories in new ways, many individuals experience reductions in distress while developing a greater sense of safety and resilience.
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Trauma often changes not only how we feel, but also how we relate—to ourselves, to others, and to the world around us. Through a psychodynamic approach, therapy provides a safe, collaborative relationship in which individuals can better understand the impact of past experiences, learn about their attachment style, develop greater emotional security, and begin building new patterns of connection, trust, and resilience that extend beyond the therapy room.
Our services · 02
Somatic Experiencing Therapy
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One of the most important advances in trauma treatment is the recognition that trauma is not only stored in memories—it also affects the nervous system.
Why Somatic Experiencing Therapy?
After traumatic experiences, the body may remain in patterns of fight, flight, or freeze long after the danger has passed. This can contribute to symptoms such as chronic anxiety, emotional numbness, hypervigilance, tension, sleep difficulties, or dissociation.
Somatic Experiencing is a body-oriented approach to trauma treatment that focuses on helping the nervous system regain flexibility and resilience.
For many individuals, incorporating somatic work can deepen healing by addressing the physiological effects of trauma alongside its emotional and psychological impact.
Individualized care
What is Somatic Experiencing Like?
Trauma affects every person differently. Some individuals benefit from directly processing traumatic memories, while others first need to establish a greater sense of safety, stability, and emotional regulation. Our clinicians work collaboratively with you to determine the approach and pace that best fits your needs.
Rather than requiring you to repeatedly retell traumatic experiences, Somatic Experiencing helps you develop awareness of physical sensations, gently release patterns of survival activation, and strengthen your body's natural capacity to regulate itself. Therapy often focuses on cultivating a greater sense of safety, grounding, and connection to your body while moving at a pace that feels manageable and supportive.
For many individuals, incorporating somatic work with traditional talk therapy can deepen healing by addressing the physiological effects of trauma alongside its emotional and psychological impact.
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Group Therapy
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Many individuals find healing in community. Skills-based groups, including our DBT Skills Group, can help participants strengthen emotion regulation, mindfulness, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness—skills that often complement individual trauma-focused treatment.
Visit our Group Therapy page to learn more.
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Couples Therapy
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Trauma can significantly affect intimacy, communication, trust, and relationships. Couples therapy helps partners understand the impact of trauma, strengthen connection, improve communication, and work together toward healing.
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Family Therapy
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Trauma often affects entire families. Family therapy can improve communication, strengthen relationships, and help loved ones better understand trauma responses while learning practical ways to support recovery.
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Medication
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For some individuals, medication can be an important component of trauma treatment. Our psychiatrists provide thoughtful medication consultation and ongoing management while collaborating closely with your therapist to ensure care is coordinated and aligned with your goals.
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Psychological Assessment
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When symptoms are complex or multiple concerns may be contributing to current difficulties, comprehensive psychological assessment can provide greater diagnostic clarity and guide individualized treatment planning.
We offer psychological assessments that provide an in-depth understanding of longstanding patterns of emotions, relationships, coping, and personality functioning. These evaluations can help clarify diagnoses, identify treatment priorities, and determine which therapeutic approach may be the best fit.
For more information, please see our Assessment and Testing page.
Treatment philosophy
A Collaborative Path Toward Healing
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Trauma can change how you experience yourself, your relationships, and the world—but healing is possible.
At Palim Health, we believe recovery is not simply about reducing symptoms. It is about helping you feel safer in your body, more connected to yourself and others, and more able to engage in the life you want to live. Whether through individual therapy, somatic approaches, couples or family therapy, or medication management, we are committed to supporting you every step of the way.
Ready to take the next step?
If you have questions or would like to schedule a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation, please reach out.