Frequently Asked Questions

No, unlike therapists, coaches are not licensed mental health professionals. They operate from a support model of care rather than a medical model of care. Coaching and therapy differ in many ways and are not mutually exclusive. I work with survivors who already have a therapist and wish to add trauma recovery coaching as part of their self-care. I also work with survivors who prefer coaching to therapy. Everyone is different and every situation is unique. Think of licensed mental health professionals as trauma first responders or trauma surgeons, and think of Certified Trauma Recovery Coaches as trauma support specialists. Certified Trauma Recovery Coaches support their clients in getting to the next level of ownership over their present and future, from just surviving to thriving beyond trauma.

As a Certified Trauma Recovery Coach:

I DON’T…

I do not diagnose, prescribe or advise on medications, treat, or cure. This means I never pathologize or label my clients’ trauma responses as mental health conditions or symptoms that need fixing. Instead, I recognize them as normal reactions to abnormal traumatic events

I do not work with active suicidality, self-harm or addictions. This kind of crisis work falls outside my scope of practice and competence, unless you are also working with a licensed mental health professional, and that you and your therapist consent to working in collaboration to ensure your safety. Relapse prevention, on the other hand, does fall within my scope of practice and competence.

I DO…

Use modalities, techniques, and resources uniquely tailored to help my clients recover from the aftereffects of trauma so they can thrive in the present, not just survive from their past

Work with clients as peers and equals, so our coaching relationship is always client-led, empowering, collaborative, free of power differentials, and within a support model of care

Support my clients in identifying, setting, resourcing, and reaching their own Recovery Goals, in ways that are realistic, motivating, sustainable, transformational, and truly life-changing

Although therapy can be a very powerful modality, if you have a strong desire to make substantial or practical changes in your day-to-day life, Certified Trauma Recovery Coaching (CTRC) may be a more direct path to recovery for you.

Effective therapy and Certified Trauma Recovery Coaching can both help you develop greater self-awareness and insights, but CTRC helps foster meaningful action and supports you through each actionable step you choose to make.

A strong Trauma Recovery Coaching partnership will help you put those new insights and awareness to work, in the form of a “What Now?” Trauma Recovery Plan that helps you achieve your desired outcomes. This process will help you gain self-awareness and self-confidence while also supporting you in developing the necessary skills and strategies to effect sustainable, transformational change.

• Certified Trauma Recovery Coach, International Association of Trauma Recovery Coaches (IAOTRC)

• Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT)/Tapping Practitioner, EFT Universe

• Reparenting the Inner Child with EFT: Levels 1 & 2 Certificate Program

• IFS-Informed, Internal Family Systems (IFS) intensive 6-month Circle

• Certified Consulting Hypnotist, New York Hypnosis Training Center, NYS Department of Education Accredited

• National Guild of Hypnotists (NGH) Member (world’s oldest professional association of hypnotists)

• Master of Education, Summa Cum Laude, Pace University

• Master of Arts in Creative Writing, Summa Cum Laude, City College of New York

• Bachelor’s of Arts in Translation, University of Paris X, Nanterre

EFT or Emotional Freedom Techniques/Tapping is a mind-body method of tapping acupressure points on the hands, face, and body with your fingertips while focusing on an issue or feeling you're hoping to resolve. This method has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety, improve performance, lessen cravings, and help resolve fears and phobias. EFT training and research is based on the standards defined by the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Division 12 Task Force on Empirically Validated Treatments. According to the APA standards, EFT has demonstrated efficacy for anxiety, depression, PTSD, and phobias. Over 100 scientific papers about EFT have appeared in peer-reviewed medical and psychology journals. These include dozens of Randomized Controlled Trials (the gold standard of scientific research), outcome studies, and review articles by investigators from Harvard Medical School, Perdue University, Stanford University, University of Arizona, and many other top institutions. You can learn more about EFT on the EFT/Tapping page. Using an EFT app as part of your daily self-care routine helps emotionally regulate our nervous system, but for more targeted or in-depth support on complex issues, working with a trained EFT practitioner is the key to success. Learn the tapping points today so you can experience what it’s like and instantly download my free e-book.

You know how sometimes a part of us wants to do something, yet another part of us pushes back and we feel stuck? Like feeling committed versus doubting ourselves, or feeling called to grow while also feeling scared to take the next step? Internal Family Systems/IFS-informed or Parts Work-informed coaching is a powerful tool to uncover the many parts of us that are sometimes in conflict, so we can establish lines of communication and help resolve what feels stuck. As any form of coaching, parts work-informed coaching is client-led and based on your own personally identified goals. The bottom line is that as trauma survivors, we are not broken but wounded, and wounds can and do heal, including old ones. With adequate support and resourcing, we have the capacity to heal ourselves. Parts work-informed coaching can help you get to a place of deeper connection with “Self,” “inner wisdom,” or whichever belief system resonates most for you. As we learn to notice, listen, and validate (but not necessarily agree with) all of our parts, we uncover who we are truly meant to be. It then becomes easier to feel safe and to act in alignment with our core values and beliefs, so we can live more freely and authentically, from the inside out. Check out the parts work page to find out more.

When healing from any kind of complex/relational trauma, learning the dynamics of a safe, supportive and healthy relationship, re-establishing central nervous system regulation, and reconnecting with ourselves on a deep level are often important milestones in our journey.

As a Certified Trauma Recovery Coach, I hold a safe space for you to pursue the work of healing in a non-judgmental, empathy-filled setting that’s specifically tailored to your recovery needs and goals. The methods and techniques I employ are holistic and may vary over time, and you have voice and choice the whole time through each new step. Somatic modalities such as EFT/tapping, IFS/parts work, inner child work, Polyvagal system regulation techniques, psychoeducation, mindfulness, breathwork, hypnosis, relaxation, trauma-responsive movements, or guided imagery, are just a few of the trauma recovery tools we may use together, based on your interests and needs. Go to the Science page if you’d like to find out more about the research!

Because all coaching sessions are client-led, you will never be asked to discuss things with me that you are not comfortable going into. Talking about traumatic content is not the only way to recover from trauma and for many survivors of complex trauma, it may not even be the best way. The bottom line is that you remain in the driver’s seat at all times, and that I always pace myself after you.

Check out the Start Here page to learn more about the Trauma Recovery Process.