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EMDR Therapist in Virginia Beach, VA
Life in Virginia Beach is a one-of-a-kind experience. From serene walks along the Atlantic coastline to the vibrant energy of the Oceanfront, there are endless ways to explore and connect with others. Yet, beneath the city’s beauty and energy, you may be carrying the lingering effects of trauma or struggling to manage attachment wounds that impact your relationships and self-confidence. You may feel stuck as you strive to overcome a painful experience that keeps holding you back. You may feel highly anxious or completely numb; you may even be experiencing panic attacks.
Your lived experience may make it difficult to trust your judgment and decisions. You may long for authentic connection while finding it nearly impossible to trust people. You may find yourself constantly tired in a way that more sleep can’t fix. Together, these things can leave you feeling alone and detached, even from the people you love most. The good news is that healing is possible, and the right support can make a dramatic difference.
Hi! I’m Hilary Stowers, a holistic mental health counselor.
I specialize in helping you process painful parts of your past and bring clarity to your attachment wounds. One of the latest evidence-based methods I use to help clients overcome these obstacles is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). With EMDR therapy, you can significantly lessen the intensity of feelings brought up by thinking about those difficult memories. This strategic approach addresses how painful experiences physically affect the brain and body. EMDR therapy has also become known for providing relief in a relatively short time frame, which is helpful for those who want to see results as soon as possible.
When Your Past Trauma Still Affects Your Present
The women who come to me are looking to finally put themselves first after years of taking care of everyone around them.
Many don't realize how their childhood experiences still affect their lives today:
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If you struggle to set boundaries
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find yourself repeating the same relationship patterns
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or feel responsible for making everyone around you happy...
It's possible you learned these coping strategies as a child, when you faced situations you didn't know how to manage.
But what helped you cope back then may now be causing friction in your relationships, parenting, work, and other areas of your life..
What Is Generational Trauma?
Generational trauma happens when painful experiences, harmful beliefs, or unhealthy coping patterns are passed down from one generation to the next.
For example, if you grew up in a family with specific expectations for women, like how to dress or behave, those ideas influence how you see yourself and what you believe you can achieve.
Or maybe you grew up in a home where people expressed their feelings through rage. You learned to stay quiet to avoid conflict or to keep everyone happy to feel safe.
The behaviors that you developed as a result are how you coped with a difficult home environment. If one of your parents struggled with alcoholism, for example, you probably learned to take responsibility for everyone around you.
As an adult, you might find yourself constantly trying to fix problems that aren't yours to solve, just to keep things from falling apart.
These coping strategies probably helped you as a child. But as an adult they can sabotage your relationships, ability to hold boundaries and to put your own needs first.
How EMDR Helps You Process Unresolved Trauma
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It’s a mouthful, I know. But in essence, it's a gentle process for healing traumatic experiences that still affect your life today.
It works with eye movements and gentle tapping of the arms or shoulders to help process painful memories that feel “stuck” in your body.
The wonderful thing about this modality is that you don’t have to relieve past traumas to heal.
I may ask you to think about a difficult experience or notice what comes up for you, but you don't have to describe every detail or tell me everything that happened.
As you process these memories, they become less emotionally charged and you start to respond to situations that once triggered you in a different way.
Support for Life Transitions with EMDR Therapy
EMDR is a gentle and scientifically proven method to process overwhelming experiences that affect how you respond to challenges in your life today.
Say you are facing a big change at work, or you’re leaving your partner, or you have health struggles.. Often the way you respond to these very stressful challenges may be rooted in the past.
For example, a difficult work situation might bring up old feelings of not being good enough, or a change in a relationship might trigger a deep fear of rejection.
By working through these past experiences with EMDR you can learn to respond to what's happening now without feeling blindsided by the past.
Frequently asked questions
What are your session fees and how often will we meet?
My fee for a 55-minute individual counseling session is $160. When we begin working together, I encourage weekly sessions to build momentum and establish a strong therapeutic relationship. As you make progress, we may naturally transition to every other week, and then monthly. However, this varies from client to client and ultimately depends on your individual needs and circumstances. Some clients prefer to continue meeting weekly long-term, while others gradually space out sessions as they reach their goals.
Do you accept insurance?
No, I'm private pay only. However, I offer superbills so clients can obtain reimbursement from their respective providers. Please visit the Benefits Checker to verify your eligibility instantly.
How do I get started?
If you’re ready to take the next step, I invite you to schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation. We will explore what you are struggling with and what you want relief from. I'll share how I work and how I can help so you can get a feel for whether we're a good fit.
My Specialties
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