Complex trauma & C-PTSD
Childhood emotional neglect
Nothing happened to you, which is exactly the trouble. There was food, a roof, and a parent in the next room, and almost nobody asking what was going on inside you.
You might recognize
Some of this may sound familiar
- You can summarize your whole childhood in one sentence and feel nothing while you say it.
- You know what everyone in the room needs and go blank when someone asks what you want.
- You apologize for taking up time, including your own session.
- Something good happens and what arrives is a flat, unhelpful nothing.
In the work
What we actually do
Naming what was missing
Absence is hard to point at. We slow down and get specific about what did not happen — who you told, who noticed, what you learned to stop asking for. This is the same ground as the wider complex trauma and C-PTSD work, approached from its quietest end.
Working below the story
You can already explain your family. Somatic and experiential work goes underneath the explanation to what your body did with it, which is usually where the flatness lives. There is no physical touch involved, and the pace is yours to set.
Letting a need count
Wanting something out loud is the part that was never safe. We practice it in small, survivable amounts, in session first, where you can watch what actually happens when you ask. Therapy outcomes are not guaranteed, and the direction of the work stays yours.
“Many approaches to therapy treat humans as logic machines. But real change lives in the emotional/unconscious mind, in the attachment systems and the body.”
FAQ
Questions people ask
Is this different from PTSD?
PTSD tends to organize around events you can name. What we're describing here is the long-climate version that sits under complex trauma and C-PTSD — years of not being met, rather than one hour that went wrong. The work is slower and less dramatic, and it is still trauma work.
I don't have anything to point at. Is that a problem?
No. You may find yourself apologizing for having nothing to report. Starting from the blank is workable.
Where do sessions happen?
Weekly therapy takes place via telehealth. I am licensed in New York and can only offer psychotherapy services to people who reside in New York State. You also need to be physically in New York State for each session. Sessions run 50 minutes, usually weekly.
Is ketamine-assisted therapy part of this?
It is a separate offering and not a starting point. Ketamine-assisted sessions run 180 minutes at $846, in person at my Manhattan office or in your home, only alongside ongoing psychotherapy with me, and never as a first-line treatment. The medication is prescribed, screened, and overseen by a separate independent licensed medical provider, never by me.
Do I have to blame my parents?
No, and many people don't want to. Understanding what was missing is not the same as filing a charge against anybody. We're after what happened to you, not a verdict on them.
What if I'm not safe right now?
If you are in danger right now, call or text 988 or dial 911. This site isn't a crisis service and email is not monitored for emergencies.
Start with a free consultation
A short conversation to see whether we would be a good fit for working together. Weekly therapy takes place via telehealth. I am licensed in New York and can only offer psychotherapy services to people who reside in New York State.