Trauma therapy
When You Understand Your Trauma but Your Body Still Reacts
Online trauma therapy for adults in Florida and Illinois that includes both mind and body.
When Trauma Continues to Affect Your Body
Even when a traumatic experience is over, your body may continue responding as though the danger is still present. You might notice chronic tension, feeling constantly on alert, emotional numbness, shutting down, or reactions that feel bigger than the situation.
These responses often make sense in light of what you've lived through. Understanding why they developed can be important, but insight doesn't always change what happens automatically.
Somatic Experiencing (SE) works with these patterns as they arise in the present, helping you build greater capacity, felt safety, and flexibility in how you respond.
Meet Amy Hagerstrom, LCSW, SEP
I'm Amy Hagerstrom, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner specializing in trauma therapy for adults. My work is grounded in Somatic Experiencing, with advanced training in developmental and complex trauma. I may also incorporate the Safe and Sound Protocol and Rest and Restore Protocol when appropriate.
My own experience with developmental trauma shaped how I understand this work. I could explain many of my patterns, but understanding them didn't necessarily change how I felt or responded. Including the body helped me feel safer in my body and in my life, lessen long-held shame, and relate to myself differently. That experience is part of what drew me to Somatic Experiencing.
I believe therapy works best when it includes both the mind and the body. Together, we build on the strengths and insight you already have while developing greater flexibility, resilience, and capacity for whatever life brings.
What it’s Like to Work Togeher
Sessions begin with whatever feels most important that day. You might come in wanting to make sense of a recent trigger, an interaction that stayed with you, or a pattern you've noticed in yourself.
Our work often moves between talking through your thoughts and emotions and slowing down to notice what's happening in your body. We might notice tension, a shift in your breathing, an impulse to move, or another physical response that comes up as we talk.
At times, we may bring in grounding, gentle movement, pushing against a wall, squeezing your fists, or finding more physical support. The somatic work is woven into the conversation and emotional processing, based on what is happening in the moment.
My training in developmental and complex trauma, infant and early childhood mental health, and Somatic Experiencing informs this work. And therapy isn’t heavy all the time. There’s room for curiosity, relief, laughter, and discovering things about yourself that may not have had much room before.
How I Approach Trauma Therapy
Somatic Experiencing: The foundation of my work, helping us work with the body and protective responses that can persist after trauma.
Developmental and complex trauma: My background helps me understand how early experiences can continue to influence relationships, self-perception, and responses to stress.
When appropriate, I may also integrate the Safe and Sound Protocol or Rest and Restore Protocol.
Trauma, PTSD, and Complex Trauma
Many people come to therapy unsure how to make sense of what they've been through. Some traumatic experiences are clearly overwhelming, such as abuse, violence, serious accidents, or medical trauma. Others develop gradually through repeated experiences such as emotional neglect, chronic criticism or shame, unpredictable caregiving, growing up walking on eggshells, or relationships where safety, comfort, or protection were inconsistent.
These kinds of repeated relational experiences are often described as developmental trauma or complex trauma (C-PTSD), where protective patterns develop in response to chronic stress or a lack of safety.
For some people, trauma follows a single overwhelming event, often described as PTSD, where the nervous system remains on alert long after the danger has passed.
Regardless of how trauma began, many of its effects can feel similar. You may notice strong reactions, shutting down, ongoing tension or exhaustion, physical symptoms that seem connected to your past, difficulty trusting yourself or others, or relying on strategies that once helped but no longer feel sustainable.
What Begins to Shift as Trauma Patterns Soften
As therapy progresses, many people begin noticing changes in everyday life rather than dramatic breakthroughs.
You may recover more quickly after becoming overwhelmed, stay present during difficult conversations, or notice tension leaving your body sooner. Situations that once pulled you into familiar reactions may begin to feel more manageable.
As your capacity grows, difficult emotions and stressful experiences can become easier to move through without becoming completely overwhelmed or shut down.
Many people also notice changes in their relationships, confidence, and sense of self. They begin trusting themselves more, setting healthier boundaries, and participating in life with greater flexibility and choice.
See My Approach to Trauma Explained
Watch this short introduction to my approach to trauma therapy and why working with the body is such an important part of the process.
Online Somatic Trauma Therapy in Florida and Illinois
Whether you’re in Fort Lauderdale, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, or elsewhere in Florida, we can do this work online. I support adults navigating the effects of trauma, helping them reconnect with their body, their relationships, and their sense of self.
Sessions take place virtually, allowing us to include both conversation and somatic work while you remain in the comfort and familiarity of your own space.
I am also licensed in Illinois and work with clients throughout the state, including Chicago.
Trauma Therapy FAQs
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Trauma is not only about what happened. It is about how your nervous system responded and what it had to hold onto in order to get through it.
When experiences feel overwhelming, unsupported, or too much for the body to process at the time, your system can stay on alert long after the event has passed. This may show up as tension, fatigue, emotional reactivity, difficulty relaxing, or a sense that your body never fully settles.
Many people I work with understand their story intellectually, yet still feel it in their body. Trauma therapy that includes the nervous system helps reconnect what you know with how you actually feel and respond in daily life.
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Trauma is a broad word that describes experiences that overwhelm a person’s capacity to cope.
PTSD often refers to the impact of a single overwhelming event where the nervous system stays activated long after the danger is over.
Complex trauma, sometimes called C-PTSD, usually develops through repeated or relational stress over time, especially when support felt inconsistent or unpredictable.In practice, the lines between these experiences are not always clear. Many people carry elements of more than one. Rather than focusing on labels, our work pays attention to how these experiences live in your body, your relationships, and your sense of self today.
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Yes. Trauma therapy can be helpful whether an experience happened recently or many years ago. Some people seek therapy soon after a traumatic experience, while others begin years later when old patterns start showing up more strongly in relationships, health, or emotional life.
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There isn’t a single timeline for trauma work. Some people begin noticing shifts early on, while deeper patterns often unfold more gradually as your nervous system builds capacity.
Consistency matters more than speed. Weekly sessions are usually the most supportive rhythm, especially in the beginning, because they help your system feel grounded enough to explore what is emerging without becoming overwhelmed.
Many people come to this work after years of insight or personal growth that didn’t fully reach the level of the body. Rather than rushing toward an outcome, we focus on creating steady, meaningful change that supports how you live, relate, and move through the world.
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I currently offer virtual sessions only.
Somatic Experiencing works well online because the focus is on what’s happening in your mind and body. I’ll guide you through the same process and practices I would in person, and they translate easily through the screen.
Being in your own space can add comfort and support. You might settle into a favorite chair, keep grounding items nearby, or even have a pet close. These small things often help you feel more present and supported during the work.
Online sessions are also practical. You don’t have to rearrange your day or commute, and you can log in from wherever you are. That way, you can put your energy into the work itself. I see clients throughout Florida and Illinois, including West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, and Fort Lauderdale.
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Individual 55-minute sessions are $200.
If you’d like to include the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) or Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP), there’s an additional fee. Details are listed on both the SSP and RRP pages. We can talk about whether either of these protocols is a good fit during your consultation or at any point in the work together.
If you're looking for trauma therapy that includes both mind and body, I'd love to see if this work would be a good fit for you. I currently have a limited number of openings for new clients.
