Welcome

Thank you so much for being here.

I am so excited to share my story because I believe I am in a unique position to serve you.

I have not only received advanced training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and trauma-healing modalities, but I have also personally experienced what it’s like to live with intense emotions, impulsive behaviors, and the deep pain of complex or relational trauma.

The therapies I now provide to my clients- Trauma-Focused DBT, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Somatic Experiencing®, EMDR, Brainspotting, and Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy - are the same modalities that supported my own transformation. I am honored to guide others through these pathways of healing, integration, and growth.

I discovered DBT after struggling for over a decade with obsessive dieting, binge eating, and body dysmorphia. I spent years in traditional psychotherapy, attended Overeaters Anonymous (OA) meetings religiously, completed a one-month yoga teacher training in France, explored countless meditation techniques, and devoured self-help books, all in a desperate attempt to find peace with food, my body, and myself.

While talk therapy gave me a place to vent, it didn’t offer the practical tools I needed to regulate emotions and manage overwhelming urges.

A friend in OA told me about DBT, and I decided to give it a try. At the time, private programs were costly, and hospital-based options had long waitlists. Determined, I took on an extra work shift to afford treatment.

Within one year of Dialectical Behavior Therapy, I learned how to regulate my emotions, let go of the binge-diet cycle, and find stability in my life.

Over time, I came to understand that the struggle with food and my body was just the surface- a manifestation of attachment trauma and complex PTSD. I carried deep, unconscious beliefs that I was unlovable and defective. I longed for closeness yet feared it, alternating between self-protection and self-abandonment.

In my search to heal these deeper wounds, I discovered Somatic Experiencing®, which helped me safely connect with buried emotions - sadness, shame, fear, and grief - through the body. It allowed me to process trauma at a pace that felt safe, not overwhelming.

Later, Internal Family Systems (IFS) helped me understand my inner world in an entirely new way. I began to see how protective parts of me had been working tirelessly to keep me safe, while younger exiled parts longed for love, connection, and care. Through IFS, I learned to relate to all of my parts with compassion and understanding, rather than judgment or rejection.

Finally, through psychedelic-assisted therapy, I experienced profound healing at a level that no other modality had reached.

These journeys allowed me to grieve deeply and find compassion and clarity around the unmet needs I carried from childhood. I was able to release emotions that had been locked in my body for decades, accessing insights and direction that felt both sacred and necessary - yet completely inaccessible in ordinary states of consciousness.

These medicines felt like ten years of therapy in a single journey - powerful catalysts that accelerated my healing process and reconnected me to a sense of wholeness and meaning. After my first experience, I understood their potential so clearly that I vowed to train professionally to offer this work to my clients, helping them access the same depth of transformation and rapid healing.

Each of these modalities has shaped not only my personal healing but also my professional approach. Today, I specialize in helping others heal from Complex PTSD and Borderline Personality Disorder, combining DBT’s structure and skills with the depth and compassion of IFS, Somatic Experiencing® and psychedelic-assisted therapy.

I believe healing from trauma isn’t just about symptom reductio - it’s about coming home to yourself, learning to trust again, and living from a place of presence, acceptance, and love.

If you want to work with someone who is not only professionally trained in the touchstone treatments for emotion dysregulation disorders, but who also truly understands your struggles as a result of having personally experienced many of them, schedule a complimentary 15-20 minute video consultation.

Let’s get started today on building your life worth living.

“Attachment trauma can lead you to withdraw from relationships in order to avoid further rejection or hurt. Or, you might feel overly dependent upon others and fearful of rejection. If you relate to these symptoms, it is important to know that you are not alone. These painful emotions are remnants of your past.”

—Dr. Arielle Schwartz