TRAUMA THERAPY in San Francisco
HEALINg, rooted in SAFETY, mindfulness & compassion
IN-PERSON THERAPY IN SAN FRANCISCO AND ON LINE SESSIONS AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA
Shaken by trauma?
find your way back to safety and solid ground
After a distressing event, it’s common to feel on edge, overwhelmed, or disconnected from yourself and the world around you. Some experiences can be so profoundly overwhelming that they disrupt your sense of stability and keep your body and mind in a constant state of alert. Trauma can leave you feeling anxious, depressed, easily angered, and perpetually on guard.
You may struggle with intense emotions that interfere with work, relationships, or even basic decision-making. You might notice heightened sensitivity to certain stimuli—or find yourself avoiding people, places, or reminders of what happened.
Right now, relaxing, sleeping, or even feeling safe may feel impossible. Still, you may be hoping that PTSD therapy in San Francisco or online trauma therapy in California can bring relief and help restore your sense of groundedness.
When Trauma Affects Every Part of Your Life
After a traumatic experience, even simple tasks can feel overwhelming. You may find yourself trying to numb intense feelings, avoid reminders, or forgive yourself for reactions that feel out of control. Your body may respond too—headaches, muscle tension, or stomach upset appearing seemingly out of nowhere.
Night terrors, flashbacks, or intrusive thoughts can leave you lying awake, while daytime can feel foggy or like you’re moving through life on autopilot. Even when you try to stay strong, self-judgment and harsh criticism can creep in, making recovery feel out of reach.
If it feels like there’s a wall between you and healing, trauma therapy can help. You can gradually regain stability, feel safe in your body, and start to reconnect with life—at your own pace, with guidance from a professional who understands. At Sarita Redalia Psychotherapy, I provide a trauma-informed approach to help you feel grounded, gain clarity, and begin to heal.
not all wounds are visible - but they can still be healed
Trauma happens when an experience is so painful or frightening that it overwhelms your ability to process your emotions. While we often think of trauma as a single dramatic event, it can result from repeated experiences—like ongoing emotional, mental, or physical abuse—or from isolated incidents such as a house fire or physical assault.
When trauma occurs within your family of origin, it can create relational wounds that affect your ability to trust and connect with others. Being bullied at school, scapegoated at work, or subjected to humiliation (like being publicly criticized, shamed, or belittled) can also leave invisible scars on your psyche. If left unaddressed, these wounds can quietly shape your relationships, self-esteem, and sense of safety long after the events themselves.
Even though these injuries aren’t always visible, healing is possible. Trauma therapy provides a safe space to process these experiences, restore trust in yourself and others, and begin to reclaim your life.
Healing Trauma Can Feel Overwhelming on Your Own
Most people aren’t born knowing how to process trauma, so trying to navigate it alone can feel confusing, frustrating, and exhausting. Focusing only on symptoms like anxiety, depression, or anger may offer some relief, but it doesn’t address the root of the pain.
True healing comes from understanding the beliefs and patterns that drive your reactions, while also discovering new ways of thinking, relating, and feeling safe in your body, relationships, and the world around you. Therapy can help you gain space from the past, so it no longer dictates how you feel or respond today. This work is most effective within the safety of a trusting relationship — whether in person through trauma therapy in San Francisco or virtually with online trauma therapy in California.
With my help, you can begin to process and integrate the emotions connected to your original experiences. This integration helps you feel less reactive, safer in your body and mind, and more stable and in control as you move forward.
Finding a Safe Space to Heal from Trauma
Trauma can be confusing and isolating, whether you carry a long history of it or may not even realize that trauma underlies your symptoms. Either way, finding a space to safely process your experiences can be transformative, helping you regain a sense of safety, clarity, and control in your life.
As a trauma-informed therapist, I work with you to create distance from past experiences while helping you reconnect with safety in the present. Together, we’ll explore the beliefs and patterns that drive your symptoms, practice slowing down and staying present, and use mindfulness to help you discern healthy boundaries and parameters for safety going forward.
By gaining perspective on your experiences and restoring a felt sense of security, you create the conditions for real healing. Over time, this process can help you feel more grounded, less reactive, and able to live with a renewed sense of trust, connection, and stability in yourself and your relationships.
“I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.”
– C.G. Jung
What You Can Expect in Trauma Therapy
Healing from trauma can feel overwhelming, and it’s natural to want guidance and support along the way. In our sessions, I provide a trusting, compassionate space where you can share your experiences at a pace that feels comfortable for you. As we work together, I’ll offer practical tools to help you regulate emotions, build resilience, and regain a sense of stability in your daily life.
I’ll also support you in cultivating self-compassion while learning strategies to protect yourself and navigate challenges more effectively. The goal is to help you live fully again—where the past informs your growth, but no longer dictates your present or future.
My Approach to Healing Trauma
Healing from trauma is highly individual—no two people experience pain or wounding in the same way. In therapy, I work with you to create a safe, supportive space where you can explore your experiences, process difficult emotions, and gradually regain a sense of balance and agency in your life.
I draw on mindfulness, relational, and integrative approaches, adapting the work to your unique needs and goals. Together, we cultivate curiosity and self-compassion, allowing you to explore patterns, challenge self-judgments, gain insight, and experiment with new ways of relating to yourself and the world.
My hope is that our work together will help you heal emotional wounds, restore trust in yourself and others, and empower you to live a fuller, more grounded life.
Approaches I Use in Trauma Therapy
I take an eclectic approach to trauma therapy, combining strategies that address the psychological, emotional, and physical impact of trauma and PTSD. This allows us to work in ways that are tailored to your unique experiences, helping you regain balance, calm, and a sense of control.
Narrative therapy helps you gain mastery over your past by reframing experiences so they feel less immediate and threatening. It can provide insight into painful thoughts and feelings, reducing emotional reactivity and helping you feel more steady.
Somatic therapy focuses on how trauma can be held in the body, often showing up as muscle tension, fatigue, headaches, or insomnia. Techniques such as deep abdominal breathing, guided visualization, yoga, and progressive muscle relaxation help you release tension, stay grounded, and reconnect with your body.
Exposure therapy provides a safe way to confront trauma-related fears and triggers, develop self-compassion, and practice new ways of protecting yourself. It helps you consciously change how you perceive and respond to past experiences.
Mindfulness-informed therapy teaches you to stay present so that triggers don’t pull you back into the past, allowing you to respond to life from a calmer, more centered place.
Psychodynamic therapy helps you understand how past experiences have shaped your beliefs and reactions, giving you clarity about the roots of your current struggles.
Schema therapy works with core beliefs about yourself and the world. It can be especially helpful for childhood trauma, supporting you in building healthier relationships, improving self-worth, and developing more effective ways of meeting your needs.
Together, these approaches provide a comprehensive toolkit for healing, helping you process trauma, regain a sense of safety, and move forward with greater resilience and self-understanding.
Thinking About Starting Trauma Therapy but Not Sure What to Expect?
It’s normal to have questions when considering trauma therapy. You might wonder how the process works, whether you’re “ready,” or how you’ll manage difficult memories or emotions. Many people also ask what a session actually feels like and whether therapy will truly help.
These questions are understandable — starting therapy can feel like stepping into the unknown. The good news is that the process is gradual and supportive. You set the pace, and together we create a safe space where you can explore your experiences, practice self-compassion, and learn skills to manage intense emotions.
Over time, therapy can help you feel more grounded, less reactive, and better able to respond to life with clarity, trust, and confidence in yourself. You have the power to take these vital steps toward healing, on your own terms and at a pace that feels right for you.
Common Questions you may have About Starting Trauma Therapy
You might feel skeptical about the effectiveness of therapy, especially online trauma treatment. That’s completely understandable. Research shows that both online and in-person therapy can be highly effective for trauma and PTSD. Even if you’ve tried to cope on your own and still feel stuck, therapy can provide a supportive, structured space to begin healing.
It’s also natural to worry about becoming reliant on your therapist. In the early stages, it’s normal to lean on someone you trust as you navigate difficult emotions. Over time, therapy helps you build self-awareness, confidence, and independence, so that your reliance gradually shifts inward—you learn to trust your own inner voice while continuing to benefit from guidance and support.
start on Your Path to Healing and Put Some Distance Between You and the Past
If trauma or PTSD has unsettled your life, therapy can help you regain balance, clarity, and a renewed sense of control. At Sarita Redalia Psychotherapy, I provide PTSD therapy in San Francisco and online trauma therapy across California for those ready to begin their journey toward recovery. Together, we can create a supportive space to process your experiences, build resilience, and gently put some distance between you and the past.
If you have questions or would like more information, please leave a confidential message at (415) 292-5888, or Contact me to schedule a free 20-minute phone consultation and take your first step toward healing today.
BOOK A PHONE CONSULT
If you have questions or would like more information, feel free to contact me to set up a free phone consultation. Please provide your contact information and some times you’d be available for a 20-minute phone conversation. I look forward to hearing from you.
IMPORTANT INFO
I am available to meet with you online or in-person at my Union Street office.
Appointments are generally 50-minutes in length and are scheduled on a weekly basis.
Longer or more frequent sessions are available for more intensive work.
You may call my office voicemail 24-hours a day and leave me a confidential message.
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