Immediate Availability - Open 7 days a week - day, evening and weekend appointments
Immediate Availability - Open 7 days a week - day, evening and weekend appointments
Trauma isn’t just about what happened—it’s about what stuck. It’s the lingering tension in your chest, the avoidance of certain conversations, the gut feeling that something’s just… off.
At its core, trauma is how your mind and body respond to overwhelming experiences, especially the ones that made you feel unsafe, unseen, or powerless. That might be a single event, like an accident or loss. But it can also be something ongoing, like childhood emotional neglect, toxic relationships, or discrimination.
For example, imagine you're in a house that caught fire once. You escaped—but ever since, the smoke alarm has been extra sensitive. Now, even burnt toast sets it off.
That’s what trauma can feel like.
When we go through something overwhelming or life-threatening, our nervous system learns to protect us. It becomes hyper-alert, watching for signs of danger—even when we’re now safe. The good news is that just like we can recalibrate a smoke alarm, we can also work with our nervous system. Through trauma-informed therapy, grounding practices, and compassionate connection, we can teach the alarm when it’s okay to rest.
Trauma is personal—what overwhelms one person might not affect another the same way. It leaves a lasting imprint on the mind and body, shaped by past experiences, support, and resilience. If you’re wondering whether your emotional patterns are linked to trauma, therapy can offer a safe space to explore and heal.
Trauma is a wound that lives in the body and mind. PTSD is one way that the wound makes itself known, demanding safety, care, and healing.
While PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) is a clinical diagnosis with specific criteria, you don’t need to be diagnosed to be affected by trauma. Many people experience trauma-related symptoms—like anxiety, emotional disconnection, or panic—without meeting the threshold for PTSD.
If something from your past continues to disrupt your present, your experience is valid. You don’t have to have a label to seek support.
Trauma and PTSD symptoms don’t just affect the mind—they show up emotionally, physically, and in your relationships.
Here are some signs that your past might still be showing up in your present:
Emotional Symptoms
Physical Symptoms
Relationship Symptoms
If you’ve ever wondered, “Was it really that bad? Or “Do I even have the right to feel this way?” You’re not alone.
At One Life, we meet you wherever you are in your story. Trauma doesn’t need to be big, dramatic, or recent to matter. If something still feels unresolved—if it still pulls at your thoughts, relationships, or energy—it’s worth looking at.
You don’t need a diagnosis to deserve healing. If you’re curious, we’re here when you’re ready.
Trauma doesn’t just change how we feel—it changes how we connect.
You might find yourself pulling away when things get too close… or overextending yourself just to keep the peace. Maybe it feels hard to trust, or even to feel fully seen.
These are natural responses from a nervous system shaped by past pain. In therapy, we help you gently untangle those patterns and reconnect with yourself—and others—from a place of safety.
Before we unpack trauma therapy, it’s helpful to understand how trauma affects the brain.
When you’re faced with danger, your body enters fight or flight mode. Your stress hormones spike, your nervous system goes into overdrive, and you experience fear.
After the threat goes away, the body returns to normal—your muscles relax, your heart rate slows, and your mind slows down.
But with traumatic experiences, your brain stays on high alert. Even when there’s no threat, your body reacts as if you’re in danger. You stay in survival mode, which creates a lot of stress and discomfort. Anything that reminds you of the traumatic event can trigger this response—sounds, smells, people, places, situations or even specific words.
Trauma disrupts your life, your happiness, and your stability. You feel helpless—like you have no control over your body or what happens to you. It prevents you from focusing at work, connecting with other people, and calming down after a stressful event.
This is not only upsetting but frustrating, too. You want to live your life and move on—not be held back by events from the past. How do you let go of trauma when your brain and body don’t let you?
With trauma-focused therapy, the goal is to help people work through and process their past. It targets the long-lasting effects that disrupt your life years after a traumatic event.
You’ll learn to accept what happened, let go of the self-blame you may have, and cope with those memories as you move forward.
First, ask yourself this: Are you ready to start working through your trauma?
During therapy, you’ll revisit parts of your story at your own pace, learning to work through the beliefs you’ve developed and how they show up in your body, thoughts, and relationships. With the right approach and the right therapist, this process can help you reconnect to yourself and the present moment.
Here are a few types of therapy we offer:
PTSD can make your brain stay stuck in “danger mode,” even when you're safe. Treatments like exposure therapy help retrain your brain by gradually facing reminders of the trauma, so fear loses its grip over time.
Trauma memories don’t process like regular ones. EMDR helps move stuck memories into long-term storage by reprocessing them while gently stimulating both sides of the brain.
CBT helps identify and reframe unhelpful thought patterns. You’ll learn how to shift the inner narratives that fuel anxiety, shame, or low self-worth.
When trauma keeps you stuck in the past, mindfulness gently brings you back to the now. You’ll learn how to stay grounded even when your body says it’s time to panic.
Instead of fighting your pain, ACT helps you create space for it while choosing actions that align with your values.
Especially powerful for couples or relational trauma, EFT helps rebuild emotional safety, trust, and deeper connection.
We offer both in-person and online trauma counselling through a secure, confidential video platform. When you reach out, just let us know what feels right for you—we’ll take care of the rest.
We create a safe space where you can gently explore your story, learn tools to calm your body, and slowly reprocess painful experiences at your own pace.
That’s okay. We’ll never force you to go anywhere you’re not ready to go. Therapy can start with building safety and trust.
Yes! We offer trauma therapy both online and in-person—whatever works best for you.
Everyone’s process is different. Some people come in for short-term support, others for longer journeys. We’ll figure that out together.
Absolutely. Many of our clients don’t have a diagnosis, just a feeling that something isn’t right. That’s enough.
If being able to use your insurance benefits is an important factor in your selection, our team would be happy to recommend one of our therapists who's services are covered by most insurance plans. Please be sure to confirm in advance if insurance coverage is preferred.
Our standard fees are aligned with the recommended fee schedule from the Psychologists' Association of Alberta’s recommended schedule. However, we offer the added value of 60-minute sessions in contrast to the recommended 50-minute session for this fee.
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