Caroline Pegram

I value the ability to support individuals from a variety of different therapeutic approaches, but the one consistent piece you will find in my services is an embodied, relational and person centered approach to therapy. This means that I value human relationships as the most important piece of our healing. I hope to support you in re-connecting with your natural strengths and passions. We will work together using an array of therapies to build a trusting relationship, increase intuitive movement and dismantle harmful power dynamics to work through challenges that you may face.

I offer a range of approaches in my practice, including the following:

Attachment-focused EMDR (AF-EMDR) is client-centered and emphasizes a reparative therapeutic relationship using a combination of (1) Resource Tapping™ (Parnell, 2008) to strengthen clients and repair developmental deficits, (2) EMDR to process traumas, and (3) talk therapy to help integrate the information from EMDR sessions and to provide the healing derived from therapist-client interactions. AF-EMDR extends the use and benefits of EMDR and bilateral stimulation for use with clients who have been typically less responsive to traditional EMDR protocols, due to acute or chronic relational trauma and attachment deficits. Those deficits include the effects of childhood physical or sexual abuse, neglect, early losses, birth trauma, medical trauma, parental drug or alcohol abuse, caregiver misattunement, secondary trauma, and the cumulative effects of all.

Tension Stress and Trauma Release Exercise (TRE) – TRE is a body-based (somatic) process which, when done properly, through a Certified TRE Provider can allow the individual to discharge tension from the body, which often does not require “revisiting the story”. (i.e. verbally describing or talking about the traumatic experience) TRE is designed to be a self-help tool that once learned, can be used as needed, throughout one’s life, thereby continuously supporting and promoting personal health and wholeness.

Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) – Developed at the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at Justice Resource Institute, TCTSY employs physical forms and movements, the emphasis is not on the external expression or appearance (i.e. doing it “right”), or receiving the approval of an external authority. Rather, the focus is on the internal experience of the participant. This shift in orientation, from the external to the internal, is a key attribute of TCTSY as a complementary treatment for complex trauma. With our approach, the power resides within the individual, not the TCTSY facilitator (TCTSY-F). Further, by focusing on the felt sense of the body to inform choice-making, TCTSY allows participants to restore their connection of mind and body and cultivate a sense of agency that is often compromised as a result of trauma.

Systems Theory – Systems theory in social work is based on the idea that behavior is influenced by a variety of factors that work together as a system. These factors include family, friends, social settings, economic class, and the environment at home. I utilize this framework to better address the varying depths that individuals show up in therapy with. In addition, I use systems theory to inform how I live my life outside of the therapy setting, including what I advocate for, how I spend my money and where I stand politically.

I also offer an eclectic collection of skills to practice that derive from therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectic behavioral therapy, compassionate mind training, acceptance and commitment therapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction.

My practice is centered around embodied presence, empathy, connection, and deep listening. I have a lot of experience working within the continuum of addiction treatment, this was my introduction into trauma work. Through working with individuals whose relationship with substances brought them to my door, I quickly learned that at the heart of the “addiction symptoms” were deep emotional and physical wounds. I would say most of the clients I have worked with have been on the receiving end of sexual violence ranging from pre-verbal assault to actively being assaulted in a current relationship. It was in these relationships that I started to see the huge potential for resilience, as well as a need for integrating safety and embodiment into the more traditional modalities.