Cameron Lewis (he/him)

When treating trauma with EMDR therapy, I integrate ego-state "parts" work with clients who may be struggling with hard-to-treat complex trauma histories. I find it helpful in fully addressing the unique inner ecology of each client, as well as any resistant "parts" which may present as barriers to treatment. I can also provide short-term EMD therapy to quickly reduce distressing trauma symptoms, allowing space for adequate coping skills to be provided prior to full EMDR reprocessing.

I've participated in comprehensive DBT training, and have over two years experience co-facilitating and teaching weekly DBT skills group in community mental health. I've used DBT to successfully treat borderline personality, suicidal ideation, PTSD, and other hard-to-treat conditions. Challenging clients to think dialectically, I provide clients a variety of coping skills to better tolerate distress & regulate emotions, which allows clients opportunities to engage in new behaviors.

As an IFS-trained therapist, frightening and extreme behaviors are compassionately understood as sincere attempts to help restore balance and calm within ourselves. As a non-pathologizing approach to psychotherapy and understanding behavior, we can acknowledge and validate the parts of ourselves that desperately try to help soothe us, without degrading, criticizing, or invalidation . We can also safely help unburden our wounded parts that hold pain and keep us stuck in ineffectual patterns.

Whether we're coping with the aftereffects of a single-incident trauma, relationship trauma, or developmental trauma/complex PTSD, our ability to safely connect to ourselves and others is interrupted, and our quality of life suffers. Trauma takes away the joy and freedom of living. With EMDR and IFS we can safely reprocess and unburden the lingering aftereffects of trauma, and help you move forward with life.

Becoming aware that the space between “stimulus and response” is where the power to change our lives resides empowers us with new and workable ways to respond to anxiety. Ironically, liberating ourselves from controlling aspects of anxiety requires a willingness to compassionately interact with uncomfortable aspects of our experience that some of us have spent a lifetime in the service of avoiding. It requires from us a willingness to notice our anxiety for what it really is...

Anxiety is felt as strong and often unnerving physical sensations when our brain’s threat detection system is triggered in the presence of a real or perceived threat through activation of the sympathetic nervous system. Most anxiety disorders are driven by fear-based thoughts triggered by perceived threats that stem from unprocessed psychological and emotional injury. EMDR and IFS can heal anxiety, often within the first few sessions.

When you’re triggered, the “thinking” part of your brain shuts down, the fight or flight response takes over, and you react in explosive, self-defeating and harmful ways. Guess what; it’s not your fault. You didn’t choose to be triggered, did you? It’s not your fault that your brain evolved to keep you safe and alive at any cost. Your brain evolved to react—without thinking—to keep you safe. We can reprocess and heal your triggers so you no longer overreact in the absence of genuine threat.