EMDR Intensives for CPTSD, Toxic Shame & Guilt
For the shame you've carried for years. The kind you understand, but still feel in your body every day.
Focused CPTSD healing for adults who are tired of managing symptoms and ready to resolve them. In person in Lynnwood, WA, or online across Washington and California.
You replay a conversation from years ago and still feel your face get hot.
Compliments make you uncomfortable, but criticism you remember word for word.
You feel like a burden when you ask for help, so you mostly don't.
You keep people at a distance because, deep down, you are scared of abandonment.
There's a voice inside that says something is wrong with me. Therapy helped you understand where it came from. It hasn't made it quiet.
Does Any of This Sound Familiar?
If you've lived with this for 10, 20, or 30 years, that isn't because you didn't try hard enough. It's because shame lives somewhere that insight alone can't reach.
Shame and Guilt Aren't the Same, and Both Can Get Stuck
Guilt says, "I did something bad." Healthy guilt helps us repair. But guilt can also get stuck, or land on things that were never yours to carry:
Survivor guilt, or "I should have protected my sibling."
Guilt for setting boundaries with your parents, or for living a different life than they wanted.
Guilt about something that happened to you, as if you could have stopped it.
Guilt that stays long after you've apologized, made amends, or been forgiven.
Shame says, "I am bad." Toxic shame isn't about something you did. It's a feeling that who you are is fundamentally flawed, too much, or not enough. It often forms in childhood, long before you had words for it.
In an intensive, we work with both: the guilt that's misplaced or stuck, and the deeper shame underneath it.
Where CPTSD and Toxic Shame Come From
Toxic shame usually starts in relationships where you needed safety and didn't get it. Many of my clients grew up with:
Constant criticism, or love that depended on performance
Emotional neglect, where feelings were ignored, mocked, or punished
Parents who were emotionally immature, unpredictable, or needed you to take care of them
Sexual abuse, or physical or emotional abuse
Family or cultural pressure to succeed, stay quiet, or keep up appearances
When these experiences repeat over years, they can lead to complex PTSD (CPTSD). Shame is at the center of CPTSD. It's the belief your younger self formed to make sense of what happened: if they treated me this way, it must be because of me.
Signs You May Be Living With CPTSD
CPTSD (complex post-traumatic stress disorder) develops after trauma that was repeated or ongoing, especially trauma you couldn't escape, like growing up in a hurtful home. It includes many PTSD symptoms, plus deeper changes in how you see yourself, handle emotions, and relate to others. Common signs include:
Emotional flashbacks: suddenly feeling small, scared, or ashamed, often with no clear memory attached
A harsh inner critic that rarely lets up
Feeling fundamentally different from other people, or deeply alone
Big emotions that are hard to control, or feeling numb and shut down
Trouble trusting people, or relationships that repeat old patterns
People-pleasing, perfectionism, or fierce independence
Startling easily, trouble sleeping, or always being on guard
You don't need a formal diagnosis to do this work. If this list sounds like you, that's enough to start a conversation.
Why Work with Me?
Hi, I’m Jane.
Offering EMDR intensives has changed how I see healing. Again and again, I’ve watched clients leave an intensive no longer carrying their trauma with the same weight they’d carried for 10, 20, even 30 years. The memory is still there. It just doesn’t run their life anymore.
Everyone’s path is different, but seeing that kind of relief is why I do this work. I want more people to experience it.
When you work with me, you can expect:
17 years of trauma experience. I’ve walked alongside clients through childhood trauma, CPTSD, sexual and medical trauma, and the quiet weight of shame.
An approach that reaches the body, not just the mind. I combine EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Somatic Experiencing, and attachment repair, so healing goes deeper than insight alone.
A pace that respects your nervous system. We go as deep as your body is ready for, never faster.
Care that honors your whole story. As a BIPOC, culturally responsive therapist, I make room for the personal, family, and cultural layers of what you carry.
A true partnership. You’re the expert on your life. We decide together what to focus on and how.
You’ve already taken a brave step by being here. Let’s take the next one together.
What CPTSD Healing Actually Looks Like
CPTSD healing isn't about forgetting the past or never being triggered again. It's about the past losing its grip. Emotional flashbacks get shorter and less frequent. The inner critic softens. You can feel something hard without being swallowed by it.
Healing from complex trauma usually happens in three phases: building safety and stability, processing the memories that hold the pain, and bringing the changes into daily life. An EMDR intensive follows the same path. Your preparation session builds stability, the intensive does the focused processing, and the integration session helps the changes last.
Why Shame Lasts So Long, Even After Years of Therapy
You can know something in your head and still not feel it in your body. You might know it wasn't your fault. Your nervous system hasn't gotten the message.
Shame is stored as an early, body-level memory: the collapse, the urge to hide, the heat in your face. Talk therapy builds understanding, which matters. But these memories often need a different kind of processing to change. That's what EMDR, parts work, and somatic therapy are designed to do.
How an EMDR Intensive Helps CPTSD and Shame
Shame tends to shut people down halfway through a 50-minute session. An intensive gives us the time to go gently, stop when we need to, and still finish the work.
EMDR helps your brain reprocess the memories where shame took root, so beliefs like "I'm defective" can loosen and something truer, like "I was a child doing my best," can feel real.
Internal Family Systems (IFS) helps us meet the inner critic with curiosity instead of fighting it. That critic has usually been trying to protect you. We also reach the younger part of you that has been carrying the shame.
Somatic Experiencing helps your body come out of collapse and freeze, so you can feel more grounded and present.
You don't have to tell me every detail. EMDR doesn't require you to describe what happened out loud. For many people carrying shame, this is the reason they can finally do this work.
What Clients Often Notice
Everyone's healing is different. After an intensive, clients often describe:
✓The inner critic gets quieter, or easier to step back from
✓ Old memories feel more distant, like something that happened rather than something still happening
✓ Less need to over-apologize, over-explain, or over-perform
✓ More ease setting boundaries, especially with family
✓Moments of feeling okay just as they are
What This Can Look Like
This is a composite story based on common experiences. It does not describe any real client.
M. is 42, a nurse, and the person everyone relies on. She's been in therapy on and off for 15 years. She knows her mother's criticism shaped her. But she still lies awake replaying every interaction, sure she said something wrong.
In her preparation session, we identified the belief underneath: I'm only acceptable if I'm useful. Over a two-day intensive, we worked with a handful of childhood memories where that belief formed, and with the critical part that kept it alive. By the integration session, she noticed she'd turned down an extra shift without spending the evening feeling guilty about it.
Is an Intensive Right for You?
An intensive may be a good fit if:
✓ You've carried shame, guilt, or childhood trauma for years and feel stuck
✓ You've done therapy before and understand your patterns, but they haven't changed
✓ You want focused, deeper work in a shorter timeframe
Weekly therapy may be a better first step if you're in an active crisis, currently in an unsafe relationship, or struggling with substance use that isn't stable. We'll talk about this honestly during your consultation. If an intensive isn't right yet, I'll help you find what is.
Packages
-
Half-Day Intensive: 3 hours of EMDR, plus 3 hours of prep and integration
Package Includes:
•EMDR Intensives Workbook•90 minutes pre-intensive assessment.
•3-hour of EMDR intensive (with IFS parts work and Somatic Experiencing).
•90 minutes post-intensive evaluations.
Pricing: $1620 -
2-Day Intensive: 6 hours of EMDR, plus prep and integration
Package Includes:
•EMDR Intensives Workbook•90 minutes pre-intensive assessment.
•6-hour of EMDR intensive (with IFS parts work and Somatic Experiencing).
•90 minutes post-intensive evaluations.
Pricing: $ 2430 -
3-Day Intensive: 9 hours of EMDR, plus prep and integration
Package Includes:
•EMDR Intensives Workbook•90 minutes pre-intensive assessment.
•9-hour of EMDR intensive (with IFS parts work and Somatic Experiencing).
•90 minutes post-intensive evaluations.
Pricing: $ 3240
Attuned Immersion:
5-Day Intensive
15 hours of EMDR · For CPTSD and toxic shame you’ve carried for 10, 20, or 30 years
Toxic shame doesn’t come from one moment. It builds over years of criticism, neglect, or never feeling good enough, until the harsh inner voice feels like the truth about who you are. Attuned Immersion gives us a full week to work through the core memories and beliefs underneath that voice, and to gently meet the protective parts that have been holding it all together.
Package Includes:
EMDR Intensives Workbook
90-minute pre-intensive assessment
15 hours of EMDR intensive over 5 days (with IFS parts work and Somatic Experiencing)
Brief end-of-day check-in to support rest and integration
Two 90-minute integration sessions (about one week and four weeks after your intensive)
Pricing: $5,265
Attuned Immersion is offered after your preparation session confirms it’s the right fit and the right time. You’ve already been carrying this long enough. We’ll make sure the pace feels safe.
Questions About CPTSD, Shame & EMDR Intensives
What if I feel too ashamed to even talk about it? That's very common, and it's okay. We go at your pace. EMDR doesn't require you to say everything out loud, and we can start with how the shame feels in your body rather than the story behind it.
I've tried EMDR before and it didn't work. Why would this be different? Sometimes EMDR stalls because the parts of you that protect against shame weren't given attention first. I combine EMDR with IFS so those protective parts feel safe enough to let the work happen. A longer session also means we don't have to stop just as things start to move. [Link: your blog post "I Tried EMDR Therapy, But It Didn't Work for Me"]
What's the difference between toxic shame and CPTSD? CPTSD is a form of trauma that develops from repeated or ongoing harm, often in childhood. Toxic shame is one of its core symptoms. You can carry toxic shame without meeting criteria for CPTSD, and an intensive can help either way.
Is EMDR effective for CPTSD? EMDR is one of the most researched treatments for PTSD and is recommended by the World Health Organization. Research on CPTSD specifically is still growing. Complex trauma generally responds best when processing is paired with solid preparation and stabilization. That's why every intensive includes a preparation session, and why I combine EMDR with IFS and somatic work.
Do I need a CPTSD diagnosis? No. Many people recognize themselves in descriptions of CPTSD without ever being formally diagnosed. We'll focus on what you're experiencing, not on a label.
What are emotional flashbacks? An emotional flashback is a sudden wave of old feelings, like fear, shame, or helplessness, that comes from childhood but feels like it's happening now. Unlike a visual flashback, there's often no clear memory attached. They're one of the most common signs of CPTSD and a key focus in an intensive.
Will I feel worse before I feel better? Some people feel tired or tender for a day or two after processing. We plan for this. You'll leave each day grounded, with a self-care plan, and the integration session helps you make sense of what comes up.
Can I do this online? Yes. Many people find it easier to work on shame from the privacy of their own home. You'll need to be located in Washington or California during sessions.
Can I keep seeing my regular therapist? Yes, and it's often recommended. With your permission, I'm happy to coordinate with them.
It’s Time to Stop Carrying So Much
You don't have to keep managing shame on your own. Let's talk about what you're carrying and whether an intensive could help. The consultation is free and there's no pressure.
Contact
