Reclaim Therapy

05/07/2026

When people hear EMDR, they often picture going straight into trauma memories.

But when dissociation is part of your experience, it usually needs a different starting point.

Your system might not feel safe enough to stay present with that level of intensity yet.

So the work often begins with building capacity.

Learning how to notice when you’re disconnecting.
Practicing how to come back in ways that don’t overwhelm you.
Letting some distance exist until it feels safer to move closer.

That’s not doing it wrong. That’s what makes the process possible.

We go deeper into this in this week's blog.

Link in bio to read.

05/06/2026

Meet Sarah 🧡

Sarah is the founder of Reclaim Therapy and a trauma, somatic, and EMDR therapist specializing in complex trauma and eating disorders.

Her work focuses on helping people understand the deeper patterns that come from emotional neglect, trauma, and long-term survival strategies, especially when things look “fine” on the outside but feel very different on the inside.

A lot of the people Sarah works with have already done therapy before.

They have insight. They understand their story.

But they still feel stuck in their nervous system, their relationships, or their relationship with their body.

This is the work Sarah is passionate about. Helping people move beyond just understanding their experiences and into actually feeling different.

If that resonates, you’re not alone.

And you don’t have to figure it out by yourself.

Learn more about working with Sarah and the Reclaim Therapy team through the link in our bio.

05/05/2026

A lot of people think if you can talk about your trauma, you’ve processed it.

But dissociation complicates that.

You can have a clear narrative and still feel completely disconnected from it. Or find yourself overwhelmed the second you get close to it.

Both can make sense.

Dissociation is your system creating distance so you don’t have to feel everything all at once.

Which is also why certain approaches can feel like they don’t quite land.

Not because you’re doing it wrong, but because your system is protecting you in a very specific way.

We wrote more about this and how EMDR can be adapted for dissociation in the blog.

Link in bio to read.

05/04/2026

A lot of people with complex trauma can talk about what happened.

They can tell the story. They can explain it. They can make sense of it.

And still feel… nothing.

Or the opposite. Flooded. Overwhelmed. Like it’s happening all over again.

That gap can feel confusing.

“If I can talk about it, why do I still feel this way?”
“If I don’t feel anything, does that mean it didn’t affect me?”

This is where dissociation comes in.

Not as a failure. Not as avoidance.
But as something your system learned to do to protect you.

It creates distance. From sensation. From emotion. From the full impact of what happened.

Which is why traditional talk therapy doesn’t always reach it.

Because dissociation isn’t just cognitive. It’s happening in the body and nervous system.

EMDR works differently.

It doesn’t force you to relive everything all at once.
And it doesn’t require you to feel everything right away.

It can be adapted to work with your system, at a pace it can tolerate, helping build capacity while processing what hasn’t been fully integrated yet.

We break this down more in this blog, including why dissociation shows up and how EMDR can be tailored when that’s part of your experience.

👉 Read it here: https://f.mtr.cool/fppknakvyn

04/30/2026

If your inner critic feels loud, persistent, or hard to turn off, there’s usually a reason for that.

For many people, it’s not just a mindset habit.

It’s something that became wired through repetition, relationships, and your nervous system learning what helped you stay connected or avoid harm.

So it makes sense that it shows up quickly. Especially in moments where you feel exposed, uncertain, or evaluated.

That doesn’t mean it’s accurate. But it does mean it’s doing something.

And when you start to understand that, the work shifts.

It becomes less about fighting that voice, and more about getting curious about what it’s trying to prevent and building enough safety that it doesn’t have to work so hard.

I go deeper into this in the blog.

Link in bio to read.

04/29/2026

Meet Casey 🧡

Casey is one of the trauma therapists on our team at Reclaim Therapy, with a focus on somatic therapy, EMDR, and complex trauma.

She works with people who often feel stuck in patterns that don’t make sense, like your mind understands what’s happening, but your body is still reacting in ways that feel automatic.

Casey’s approach helps people slow things down and start working with the nervous system directly, so healing isn’t just something you think about… it’s something you begin to feel.

If you’ve ever thought, why does my body still react like this even when I know better? — you’re not alone.

And this is the kind of work Casey supports.

Learn more about her through the link in our bio.

04/28/2026

Most people think the inner critic is something they need to get rid of.

And I get it. It’s exhausting to live with a voice that constantly points out what you missed, what you should have done better, or how you might be perceived.

But for a lot of people, that voice didn’t just show up to make your life harder.

It developed in environments where being “off” in some way had a cost. So your system adapted by trying to stay ahead of it.

Which is why it can feel so automatic. And why it doesn’t just respond to logic or positive thinking.

Shifting it usually starts with understanding what it’s trying to do for you, not just trying to quiet it.

I walk through this more in the blog, in a way that actually connects the dots.

Link in bio to read.

Curious if this lands, what does your inner critic tend to say most?

04/27/2026

Your inner critic probably sounds like it’s trying to keep you in line.

*Don’t mess this up.
*You should be doing more.
*Why are you like this?

And if you’re honest, we're sure a part of you listens.

Because probably at some point, being hard on yourself helped you stay connected, avoid conflict, or reduce the risk of being judged, rejected, or misunderstood.

So now it shows up quickly. Often before you even have time to think.

Here's the thing... Your inner critic is not just negative thinking. It’s a conditioned, protective response shaped by your nervous system and past relationships.

It learned that if it stayed one step ahead of mistakes or disapproval, you might stay safe or connected.

So trying to silence it completely can backfire.

Because that voice is not trying to hurt you. It is trying to prevent something your system still perceives as a threat.

The work is not getting rid of it.
It’s understanding what it’s protecting you from and helping your system learn that you have more capacity now.

We break this down in a way that actually makes sense in this blog, including how to start shifting your relationship with that voice without turning it into another thing you judge yourself for.

👉 Read it here: https://www.sarahherstichlcsw.com/blog/how-to-silence-your-inner-critic

04/23/2026

A lot of nervous system responses don’t look the way people expect them to.

It’s not always obvious panic or shutdown.

Sometimes it looks like calling it “just stress” when your body is already in fight-or-flight.
Or thinking you’re “just tired” when your system has actually pulled you into shutdown.

You can look steady on the outside and still feel on edge internally.
You can want connection and still feel your body pull back when it gets close.

These aren’t random reactions.

They’re patterns your nervous system learned over time.

And the goal isn’t to force yourself to stay calm all the time. It’s to build the capacity to move between states and find your way back to safety.

If you want a deeper breakdown of this, we get into it in the blog.

Link in bio 🧡

04/22/2026

Meet Laura 🧡

Laura is one of the trauma and EMDR therapists on our team at Reclaim Therapy, with a focus on complex trauma and parts work.

She works with people who feel pulled in different directions internally — the part of you that’s holding everything together, the part that’s overwhelmed, the part that wants connection, and the part that feels safer staying guarded.

If that feels familiar, you’re not alone.

A lot of those patterns come from really intelligent ways your system learned to cope.

Laura helps people start understanding those parts with more compassion so things feel less confusing and more manageable over time.

If you’ve ever thought, why do I feel so conflicted inside? This is the kind of work she supports.

Learn more about Laura through the link in our bio.

12/17/2025

New on the blog!
30 Overlooked Traumatic Childhood Experiences (and how they shape us as adults)

I put all 30 days from my TikTok series into a blog for you to skim through. Head to IG or TikTok to watch the full series with a lot more context!

Many people don’t realize these experiences count as trauma. A therapist explains 30 overlooked childhood trauma experiences and their long term impact.