You Are Not Broken:

Understanding PTSD & C-PTSD

Understand the signs, symptoms, and recovery process for PTSD and Complex PTSD. This resource helps you name your experience and find clarity on your path to healing.

Welcome

If you’ve ever wondered why you can’t “just move on” from painful experiences—or why you feel so much, so deeply, even when life looks good on the outside—you’re not alone. Many high-achieving professionals and creatives carry invisible wounds from the past. These experiences can quietly shape how we think, feel, connect, and cope.

PTSD and C-PTSD aren’t just clinical terms—they’re names for very real patterns of survival, disconnection, and pain that can follow us long after the danger has passed. And they’re more common than you think.

You are not broken. You are becoming whole.™

What Are PTSD and C-PTSD?

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop after a single traumatic event—such as an accident, assault, or natural disaster.

Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) typically arises from repeated or prolonged trauma—often beginning in childhood—and may involve emotional neglect, abuse, or environments where you had to shut down to survive.

While PTSD is often associated with fear-based responses (like flashbacks and hypervigilance), C-PTSD can involve chronic shame, emotional numbness, difficulty trusting others, and a deeply ingrained belief that something is wrong with you.

Both can significantly impact your relationships, confidence, and overall quality of life—especially if they’ve never been named, validated, or treated.

Common Signs of PTSD and C-PTSD in High Achievers

  • Perfectionism or constant self-criticism

  • Trouble relaxing or feeling emotionally safe

  • Difficulty with trust, intimacy, or vulnerability

  • Chronic guilt, shame, or imposter syndrome

  • Overworking, overdelivering, or emotional shutdown

  • Feelings of numbness, emptiness, or detachment

  • Unhelpful coping strategies (e.g., substance use, avoidance, compulsive behaviors)

  • The sense that you’re always “performing” wellness

These symptoms don’t mean you’re failing—they were once survival strategies. They helped you cope in painful circumstances, but you don’t have to stay in survival mode. With the right support, those patterns can begin to shift.

Healing Is Possible—With the Right Support

Trauma therapy is not about rehashing the past endlessly. It’s about reclaiming your voice, your choices, and your relationship with yourself.

As a licensed psychologist with specialized training in trauma, PTSD, and C-PTSD, I offer an approach that is:

  • Evidence-based, using CPT (Cognitive Processing Therapy), CBT, and Positive Psychology

  • Deeply collaborative, where your autonomy and pace are honored

  • Safe and nonjudgmental, with practical tools for managing overwhelm

  • Designed for high-achievers, creatives, and those who are used to doing it all on their own

Whether this is your first time seeking help or you've tried therapy before without feeling truly seen—you’re welcome here.

You Deserve to Heal

Healing won’t mean losing your drive, your edge, or your success. It means integrating your experience, softening your inner critic, and feeling truly at home in yourself.

You are not broken. You are becoming whole.™

Sources & Further Reading: