How Trauma Shows up

Trauma looks different at different ages — but its impact is real at every stage of life.

You (or your child) might be experiencing:

• Anxiety, panic, or emotional overwhelm

• Depression, shutdown, or loss of motivation

• Chronic tension, sleep issues, or health symptoms with no clear cause

• Challenges with school, attention, or social connection (in children and teens)

• Disconnection from self or others

• Perfectionism, people-pleasing, or self-sabotage

• Shame, mistrust, or difficulty feeling safe in relationships

• Feeling stuck, unheard, or like you don’t fully belong

These aren’t flaws. They’re survival strategies. And they can shift.

Our Approach to Healing Trauma

At CPYC, we don’t just treat symptoms — we work with the whole person.

We see trauma responses as logical, understandable, and forgivable adaptations. Your body did what it had to do to help you survive. These coping strategies made sense in the context of what you were living through. But the brain and body don’t always recognize when the danger is over — and that can mean old patterns show up in places they no longer belong.

Our work is about gently updating those survival responses, so you can live with more freedom, connection, and self-trust.

Our trauma therapy is:

• Relational – rooted in safe, honest connection

• Neuroscience-based – informed by how trauma shapes the brain and nervous system

• Somatic and embodied – using the body as a source of information, not just symptoms

• Resource-oriented – drawing on your strengths and capacity, not just your pain

• Developmentally informed – attuned to how early experiences shape current patterns

• Attachment-focused – supporting repair in how you relate to others and to yourself

• Parts-oriented – making room for the internal protectors, younger parts, and adaptive strategies that still live inside

• Memory reconsolidation-focused – helping shift old emotional truths and beliefs for lasting transformation

• Wisdom- and energy-informed – honouring your body’s subtle systems and intuitive knowing

This work is not about pathologizing you. It’s about understanding how you adapted — and gently and effectively helping those patterns evolve so you can live more fully in the present.

What You Can Expect

Trauma therapy at Collingwood Psychotherapy and Yoga Centre is tailored to your needs and life stage — whether that means play-based sessions with a child, resourcing and regulation with a teen, or processing long-held trauma in adulthood.

Along the way, you may notice:

• More steadiness and emotional capacity

• Fewer blowups or shutdowns (in yourself or your child)

• Stronger boundaries and clearer communication

• Greater comfort in your own skin

• More nourishing relationships and a deeper sense of trust

• A new way of responding to stress — from regulation, not survival

Instead of reacting from old patterns, you’ll learn to meet the present moment with more clarity, calm, and self-compassion.

How to Begin Trauma Therapy with CPYC

📞 Meet our trauma therapists – Learn more about each therapist’s approach, who they work with, and how they show up in this work. 

🌿Book a free consult call – A no-pressure way to ask questions, share a bit about what you’re looking for, and see if we’re a fit. 

🧠 Choose the path that feels right for you – Whether you start with individual therapy, Whole Again Program, couples work, group work or support for your teen, we’ll walk with you.