Trauma Therapy for Complex Trauma (CPTSD) in Cleveland, Ohio

Complex Trauma (CPTSD)

Not all trauma stems from a single event. Complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) can develop from ongoing experiences that leave you feeling unsafe, powerless, or unable to escape. It can begin in childhood, occur within important relationships, or arise in situations where escape is impossible.

Many people with CPTSD learned to adapt in order to survive. These adaptations may have helped you to get through difficult experiences at the time, but later can show up as emotional dysregulation, difficulty maintaining relationships, and negative beliefs about yourself and the world.

If you’ve spent years feeling “too sensitive,” “too much,” or like something is wrong with you, it may be your nervous system reacting to what it learned from past experiences. For example, you may have learned that the safest way to maintain connection was to keep the peace by staying quiet, minimizing your needs, or shrinking yourself. Healing begins when you recognize that these responses developed for a reason.

What is CPTSD?

Although the World Health Organization recognizes complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) as a distinct diagnosis, it is not listed separately in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR) used in the United States. As a result, people with CPTSD are often previously diagnosed with conditions such as bipolar disorder, ADHD, or borderline personality disorder. For many, the complex trauma framework offers a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of how prolonged trauma has shaped their emotions, relationships, nervous system, and sense of self.

People with CPTSD experience the core symptoms of PTSD plus additional challenges related to identity, emotion regulation, and relationships, such as:

  • Intense emotional reactions

  • Persistent shame, guilt, or feeling “not good enough”

  • Trouble trusting others or feeling safe in relationships

  • Fear of rejection, abandonment, or being a burden

  • People-pleasing and difficulty setting boundaries

  • Feeling disconnected from yourself, your emotions, or your body

  • Difficulty identifying or expressing your needs

  • Feeling stuck in survival patterns (fight, flight, freeze, or fawn)

What can cause CPTSD?

I help people with CPTSD often caused by:

When you repeatedly experience stress without adequate support, you may learn to stay alert, suppress your needs, or prioritize others’ emotions in order to feel safe.

These patterns can continue throughout your life, even when the original environment is no longer present.

Healing from Complex Trauma

Healing from CPTSD isn’t about changing who you are. It’s about understanding the experiences that shaped you and developing new, compassionate ways of relating to yourself and the world. The patterns that kept you safe were adaptive responses to what you endured. Healing invites you to expand your toolkit so those patterns no longer limit you.

I offer trauma-focused counseling, EMDR, art therapy, and somatic therapy to support neurobiological and emotional change so your brain and body can learn safety, regulation, and resilience. With trauma-informed care, you can strengthen your sense of safety, improve emotion regulation, build healthier relationships, and reconnect with yourself and others.

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