Trauma Intensives with
Dave Zellmer, LICSW
Trauma isn’t only about what happened to you. It’s also about what you start to believe about yourself and the world as a result of that experience.
Throughout my time in practice I have found that trauma is often at the root of so much of what we work on. When trauma goes untreated it can result in your body going into high alert and responding to situations in ways that you wouldn’t expect. You might find yourself responding to things that remind you of your trauma in intense ways that surprise you. You might start to avoid things that remind you of your trauma. You might lose trust in yourself and/or in others and find yourself isolating more and more. When traumatic experiences go unhealed over time they can become stored in the brain in ways where they are generally out of your conscious mind, but when triggered lead to intense reactions that take you and perhaps people around you by surprise.
Intensives With Dave
Trauma intensives provide an opportunity to jumpstart your healing process, allowing time to build up more coping skills and then to get into the difficult but rewarding healing work of reprocessing your traumatic experiences and rewriting those important self and world narratives.
During trauma intensives we will primarily utilize Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, which will have you focus on an upsetting issue or memory while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping, etc.). This therapy in particular over decades of research has been shown to be highly effective in bringing bad feelings around traumatic memories down in intensity as well as shifting narratives around oneself to more positive beliefs.
I also incorporate an eclectic range of interventions including Flash, CBT, ACT, motivational interviewing and mindfulness training.
More About Dave
My clinical interests include, but are not limited to: LGBTQIA+ issues; helping clients cope with and manage ongoing relational and mental health needs; grief, death and loss; trauma; school issues; sexual health issues; and family and relationship issues.I am Kink Knowledgeable and Poly-Aware/ Poly-Affirming. I believe therapy must be a safe space for you to explore issues while acknowledging and affirming all of your intersecting identities.