Transformational therapy for people who are tired of
talking endlessly and want lasting healing and change
that doesn’t take decades to work.
Translate and use the wisdom in your symptoms.
Clear trauma at the root.
Embrace yourself in the fullness of your humanity.
Step into your power.
I take people who have tried traditional talk therapies, but still feel stuck, on a holistic healing journey, so that you can finally:
Does this sound familiar?
You’ve invested many hours and have spent thousands on talk therapy, yet you continue to find yourself stuck in certain behavior patterns or reactions that you can’t seem to control, no matter what coping skills you try (and you’ve tried many). Sometimes, even your anxiety has anxiety.
You’re frustrated that talking about your issues endlessly in therapy doesn’t seem to change them much, regardless of how much insight you have into knowing *why* you do the things you do.
You’re very good at taking care of others, but you struggle to give yourself the same care and compassion you so easily give away.
You frequently question and second-guess yourself, especially in relationships, trying to fairly balance your needs and those of others. It’s much easier for you to advocate for others, than for yourself.
You can’t seem to set a boundary to save your life, even though you know you “should.” When you think about doing it, your heart pounds, your palms get sweaty, you feel guilty and worried people will be upset with you, so it just feels impossible.
You beat yourself up for not being able to make the changes that you so desperately want to make, and you may have even been told you’re “self-sabotaging.” Ick.
I get it, and I’ve got you.
The Good News
You are not “crazy,” hopeless, defective, too sensitive, or unlovable, you’re just stuck in survival. Through working with your brilliant brain, body, and nervous system, while also acknowledging the harmful impact of systems of oppression, I can help you get your system unstuck, giving you the freedom, confidence, and ease you desire and deserve, so that you can live life on your terms and make peace with your trauma and survival brain.
Why and How We Get Stuck
Our systems detect threats, both internally and externally, and respond to them automatically, outside of our conscious awareness. People with highly empathic and/or sensitive nervous systems are particularly good at this threat detection, and can be more impacted by stress and trauma.
While these responses are necessary for survival, we often get stuck in them, even when the threat has passed, and the energy mounted by the body to flee or fight continues to live inside the body if we don’t discharge it, contributing to all kinds of havoc that can show up as both physical and mental health issues. These are normal responses to abnormal circumstances. We can’t just out-think our way out of trauma; resolving trauma must include the brain and body.
Getting stuck in protective responses (i.e. stored trauma in the body) can make it feel impossible for you to effectively make changes, and can make it feel difficult or impossible to do things, such as:
-Follow through with goals
-Set boundaries and self-advocate
-Be your wonderful, magical authentic self
-Know and ask for what you want, need, and deserve, without the guilt
-Feel grounded, confident, and at ease
-Tap into and trust your intuition
Healing Through the Brain-Body “Connection”
All of the challenges described above, and many others, are related to a dysregulated autonomic nervous system, and are not easily changed with top-down approaches like talk-therapy, alone.
This is where including bottom-up, somatically-oriented, nervous system and trauma healing work can be absolutely pivotal in improving functioning and regulation throughout your system, creating the lasting changes in your brain and body that you so deeply desire.
It is crucial to acknowledge the inherent wisdom and adaptability of your brain, body, and nervous system in surviving chronically stressful, oppressive, unsafe, and/or potentially life-threatening situations, and circumstances in which your needs were not met in developmentally appropriate ways, including not feeling seen, heard, loved, accepted, etc.
It doesn’t have to stay that way. Now, I can support you in accessing your body’s innate capacity to self-heal, allowing you to live a vibrant life with more: agency, intention, success, ease, deep rest, and safe connection.
I’m Emily Perraut, Trauma and Brainspotting Specialist
I can help you to take your healing to a deeper level through working with your nervous system,
brain, and body to effectively clear trauma so you can tap into your inner wisdom and
reclaim your life, without having to be in therapy forever.
I’ve been there and know all too well that the unaddressed effects of trauma and nervous system dysregulation can wreak havoc on your mental and physical health, relationships, and ability to function in healthy ways, leaving you feeling disconnected from your needs, body, values, and authentic self expression. This is especially true if you have a highly sensitive nervous system.
I understand that so many of our challenges, behaviors, and symptoms come from the ways in which we have attempted to cope and adapt to less than optimal, and often harmful circumstances. I have learned about the power that developing a compassionate relationship with yourself can have.
My nearly decade and a half of experience as a therapist, coupled with my own healing work, have shown and taught me that we carry so much wisdom within us, and that we all have the capacity for healing and regulation, given the right circumstances, which is what I aim to facilitate.
Trauma recovery doesn’t have to take forever! Working with the body and brain, I often see changes and improvements more quickly, relative to standard talk-therapy alone, saving you precious time and money in the long term. Finally, I believe this work is integral to addressing injustice and oppression.
When you’re ready, I would be deeply honored to accompany you.
Powerful and Permanent Transformation
In sessions, I blend an alchemy of extensive training, clinical intuition, and over a decade of experience to guide and accompany you in a holistic, integrative, collaborative, and honoring way.
Together, we will deep dive into your ever-wise subconscious to unlock the blocks that keep you stuck, stressed, and dysregulated, while also providing your system with grounding, resources, pleasure, nurturing, rest, connection, and compassionate support needed for you to grow and thrive.
Shifting these patterns and addressing the underlying trauma related to these once-adaptive survival strategies can bring tremendous relief, improving regulation and overall health and wellbeing, and making living, loving, and being a sensitive human in this beautiful, messy, fucked-up world a little easier.
With expertise in:
Clinical Psychology
Brainspotting
Neuroscience
Attachment
Nervous System Work
Somatic Embodiment
IFS-informed Parts-Work
Safe and Sound Protocol
PTSD and Complex Trauma
Treatment and Recovery
I aim to work through a decolonized lens and am well-equipped to help you unlock and connect with the
innate intelligence that lives inside of you, guiding you towards reconnecting with your whole self.
Why are you knocking talk-therapy?
When you understand that your psychology is a consequence of your physiology, you understand the importance and necessity of working in ways that address physiology first, which we can’t do by only talking. It can be true that once the underlying physiology is addressed that other more top-down modalities can then become more effective.
It is not my intention to speak poorly of talk-therapy in any way, but merely to highlight its limitations in treating chronic stress and trauma. I have personally benefited from it and know that having a person to talk to who deeply listens, with whom you feel safe, and who helps you make sense of yourself and your life is incredibly valuable and healing in its own right.
The quality of the relationship between a therapist and client is cited as one of the most essential and transformative parts of any effective therapy, and it’s also foundational in the work I do. However, over the last 10-20 years in particlar, we have learned so much more about treating trauma! We know that including the body, brain, and nervous system in therapy only deepens and furthers the potential for growth, healing, and trauma recovery and relief more effectively and rapidly.
Think about it for a moment: if you’re being chased by a bear, you don’t care about how to label your thought or feeling - you don’t really have time to think at all. Your reflexes, brainstem, and autonomic nervous system take over and all you want is to escape and get to safety. Your body does exactly what it is designed to do to help you survive. Incredible! Except maybe in today’s world, the bear is an awful boss, a deadline, a tumultuous relationship, past or recent history of trauma, chronic stress or illness, and living under systems of neocolonialism, capitalism, patriarchy, etc. I can help you to learn how to support and nurture your system to allow you to move out of survival mode and to build resources so that you have enough safety, time, energy, and space to feel better and to choose to live life on your terms, as opposed to always just trying to out-run the bears (i.e. detect threats) that are no longer there.
It’s not uncommon that people come to me after trying numerous other therapies that primarily target the mind, thoughts, feelings, and behavior, without effectively addressing underlying stress and trauma physiology. Some of these people have even been labeled as “resistant,” told they’re not trying hard enough, they’re self-sabotaging, that they must not really want to change, or have otherwise been blamed and shamed for not making progress by practitioners who do not understand trauma or how to safely and effectively work with it, which can be harmful and further traumatizing. This can all change when we work with your physiology first, so your system has the resources and support it needs to allow you to build capacity to take meaningful action and make the changes you desire - both inside of yourself and out in the world.
Trying talk-therapy, or any therapy, can be a wonderful step towards growth and healing, but it will only get you so far without an experienced, intuitive, attuned, trauma-trained practitioner who knows how to skillfully help you work with your body and nervous system. That’s where I come in.
I get it. Let’s shift my physiology and get the bears off my back!
