Carol A. Covelli, LCSW, PLLC

06/27/2025

💬 “I’ve done all the talking. I’ve gone to therapy. I’ve read all the books. So why do I still feel unsettled?”

I can’t tell you how many women—especially women over 40—have said this to me.

They’ve carried layers of emotional pain, anxiety, or self-doubt for decades.

Sometimes it’s from big, defining traumas.

But often, it’s from a childhood of small, accumulated hurts—never feeling quite enough, always putting others first, constantly pushing through.

And here’s the thing no one tells us:
Talk therapy can only help to a certain extent.
When trauma, or overwhelming or disturbing experiences, are stored deep in the subcortical parts of the brain—when it lives in the central nervous system, not just the neocortex—it’s not enough to address it from a place of logic.

You have to access it where it’s actually held.
That’s why I use Brainspotting.

✨ Brainspotting is a powerful, but supportive therapy that goes beyond words to help you access, process, and release those unprocessed or partially processed experiences.

Unlike traditional talk therapy, Brainspotting:
✔️ Works with the body’s natural healing instincts
✔️ Helps locate where past experiences are stored in the brain and body
✔️ Allows you to process with compassion, support and attunement
✔️ Helps the nervous system let go of what it’s been holding—physically and emotionally

It’s not about retelling every painful memory. It’s about giving your nervous system the chance to let go.

💛 I’ve worked with women who’ve spent years feeling anxious, disconnected, or like something was always just out of reach. With Brainspotting, they’ve started to feel more present, more self-compassionate, and more in tune with themselves in ways they hadn’t experienced in a long time.

If you’ve been doing the work, but you still feel stuck… please know there’s another way forward.

You don’t have to carry this load forever. Your body already knows how to heal—it might just need the right support.

👉 If this speaks to you, I’d love to talk. I offer Brainspotting as part of my trauma-informed practice, and I’d be honored to walk with you through this next chapter.

(also check out the first comment for my latest blog where I delve into this more.)

06/26/2025

Ever feel like you’ve done all the work… but something still won’t shift?
You’ve read the books, talked it out, journaled for days—and yet, you still feel stuck.

If that’s you, you’re not alone.
So many women 40+ carry layers of emotional trauma that don’t fully heal with words alone.

That’s why I use Brainspotting.
It’s a gentle, brain-based therapy approach that helps you access unsettled experiences, release what you’ve been holding, and reconnect with yourself.

✨ You don’t need fixing. You just need space to release.
If this resonates, I’d love to talk. 💬

06/24/2025

💡 When Talk Therapy Isn’t Enough… There’s Brainspotting.

So many women come to me saying, “I’ve talked about it for years, but something still doesn’t feel settled.”

That’s where Brainspotting comes in.

This brain-based therapy approach goes deeper than words, helping you process what’s been held in your mind and body—especially in the places traditional talk therapy can’t fully reach.

✨ Brainspotting supports true healing by:

✔️ Accessing the brain’s emotional centers

✔️ Gently reprocessing unresolved or partially processed trauma

✔️ Helping you feel lighter, calmer, and more connected to who you truly are

You don’t have to keep circling the same patterns. The next level of healing is within reach. 💛

👉 Curious? Let’s talk.

And check out my latest blog—link in the comments.

06/20/2025

I work with so many people who come to me after trying all the things:
✔️ Talk therapy
✔️ Mindfulness
✔️ Medication
✔️ Self-help books
✔️ Yoga
✔️ Deep breathing

And they’re still asking: "Why am I still anxious? Why can’t I relax? Why does it feel like something’s still not moving?"

The truth is, anxiety doesn’t always live where we think it does.

It’s not just in our thoughts. It’s not always in our conscious mind.

Sometimes, anxiety gets stored deep in the nervous system - in the parts of the brain that don’t respond to logic or where talking can’t always reach.

That’s why Brainspotting, as a neuroexperiential therapy, can make a difference.

Brainspotting helps your body and brain process those “stuck” emotional layers - without needing you to explain them, or even fully understand where they originated from.

It’s attuned work. It’s deep work. And for many people, it’s where they finally start to feel significant movement - perhaps even what they’ve been searching for all along.

I’ve written more about how Brainspotting works and what a session can feel like. If you’ve ever felt like you’ve “tried everything,” but still living in tandem with anxiety, I really think this might speak to you.

If you’re curious, the blog is linked in the first comment. I’d love to hear your thoughts or your story, if you feel like sharing. 💛

06/18/2025

I’ve talked to so many women who’ve said things like:
💬 "I’ve tried therapy, I’ve done the mindset work, but it didn’t work."

Or:
💬 "I don’t always know why I’m anxious. Sometimes, I can’t point to a specific reason. I just feel that it’s there…all the time."

If that’s you, I want you to know - sometimes anxiety isn’t something we can logically think our way out of.

Because a lot of anxiety doesn’t live in our logical mind - it lives in our emotional minds and bodies.

The racing heart, the tight chest, the pit in your stomach that won’t subside no matter how much you want it to.

These aren’t just random physical symptoms. They’re signs that your nervous system is still holding something: a memory, a fear, an experience that it hasn’t been able to fully process yet.

Brainspotting therapy is a way of working with that stuck energy, gently, supportively, without necessarily needing to explain it with words.

It’s not about pushing through. It’s about helping your nervous system find its way back to safety, in its own time.

And what’s beautiful is that sometimes, when we allow our bodies to guide us toward healing, the anxiety can finally start to let go.

If this resonates with you, I’ve written a blog explaining more about how Brainspotting works and how it’s different from traditional therapy.

Maybe this is something you’ve been needing to hear. 💛

Read more here: https://www.carolcovelli.com/blog/brainspotting-for-trauma

06/17/2025

Have you ever felt like your anxiety has a mind of its own?

Like no matter how many times you tell yourself "you're fine," your chest still feels tight, the pit in your stomach is still there, and your thoughts won’t slow down?

That was the experience for so many people I’ve worked with - maybe it’s yours too.

Sometimes we can look calm and composed on the outside, while our nervous system is stuck in overdrive inside.

And when we try the usual routes (talk therapy, journaling, even mindfulness), it can feel frustrating when those tools don’t fully touch what’s happening in our bodies.

Here’s the thing: you’re not defective. You’re not a failure.
It’s just anxiety can linger in the body, in places words can’t always get to.

That’s where Brainspotting therapy comes in.

It’s an attuned, body-informed approach that connects directly with the parts of your brain and nervous system where the experiences that are activating your anxiety are stored.

There’s no pressure to analyze or explain. In fact, when you’re processing, you don’t even have to talk at all.

It’s about giving your body and your brain the space to heal as they need.

I’ve written more about this in my latest blog if you’re curious to explore: what Brainspotting is, how it works, and why it helps when talk therapy sometimes doesn’t.

If you’ve been looking for a new way to approach anxiety, this might be something worth reading. 💛

Check it out now in the comments.

06/13/2025

Many high-achieving women in their 40s and 50s are coming into therapy, coaching, or leadership support feeling like they’re burned out.

They’re exhausted.
Anxious.
Emotionally raw.
And deeply confused about why they suddenly feel this way.

In most cases, they’re navigating perimenopause—not just physically, but emotionally. And our culture still not built to appropriately support that.

👉🏼 Here's what’s often overlooked:

Hormonal shifts don’t just affect the body—they impact mood regulation and stress tolerance.

Long-held coping skills become less effective or inadequate.

Emotional responses may feel disproportionate, and can be activated by past experiences.

This isn’t a breakdown—it’s a transition. A potentially transformative one.

But women are still being told to “push through,” “get more sleep,” or “stop being so sensitive.”

We need to be asking better questions. Offering more space. Validating what’s real.

Understanding emotional impact of perimenopause on a societal level is not secondary. It’s vital.

And supporting it should not be optional. It needs to be a necessity.

Read more in the comments.

06/11/2025

Perimenopause is often framed as a physical transition—but for many women, the emotional impact can be just as significant, if not more so.

Mood swings. Anxiety. Waves of sadness. A sudden surge of self-doubt or unexpected tears. Questions about identity, worth, and what comes next.

These aren’t signs of burnout or overreacting.
They’re signs of change.

And yet, emotional changes during perimenopause are rarely acknowledged—especially in a culture that teaches women to keep pushing, stay composed, and prove they can handle anything without missing a beat.

But here’s the truth:
This isn’t regression. It’s transition.
And transitions don’t just ask us to function—they ask us to feel.

Many women begin to wonder:
“Why can’t I handle things like I used to?”
But the real question is—should we?

Emotional changes in midlife don’t mean someone is failing.
They’re a reflection of something meaningful—and they deserve compassion, not shame.

It’s time to normalize the emotional realities of perimenopause, particularly in spaces where strength is assumed to mean silence.

Because women can be powerful and vulnerable.
Capable and overwhelmed.
In transition and still whole.

Let’s make space for both the strength and the softness that midlife brings.

Read more here:

There’s been a noticeable—and long overdue—shift in conversations about perimenopause. More women are sharing their experiences, more healthcare providers are learning to recognize the signs, and more articles are covering the hormonal changes that come with this stage of life. However, what.....

06/10/2025

We’ve made progress talking about perimenopause—finally. More articles, more awareness, more women speaking openly about hot flashes, sleep disruptions, fatigue.

But there’s still a missing piece:
The emotional side of perimenopause.

Many women experience sudden waves of anxiety, irritability, grief, even panic. And instead of being seen as valid responses, these emotions are often dismissed—or pathologized.

What we’re missing is context. Perimenopause doesn’t just introduce new emotional challenges—it reactivates old ones. Experiences that were never fully processed. Beliefs formed in survival. Emotions that were once suppressed to function in a world that demanded composure and productivity.

When the body changes, identity shifts. And in a culture that links a woman’s value to stability and service, that shift can feel threatening.

👉🏼 Women in this stage often:

1. Question who they are beyond their roles

2. Struggle with emotional overwhelm that seems to come “out of nowhere”

3. Feel shame for not coping “as well as they used to”

4. Experience a kind of rawness that’s hard to name—but deeply real

If this resonates with you or someone you support (personally or professionally), know this:

These emotions aren’t weakness. They’re signals. And they deserve care—not dismissal.

This season of life isn’t just about managing symptoms.
It’s about listening to what’s been quietly waiting to be heard.

Read my latest blog now where we delve into this - the link is in the first comment.

06/06/2025

You show up.

You’re articulate. Polished. People think you’re confident. And you used to be, but something's changed.

No one else has realized when you’re now in the spotlight, there’s an inner tug-of-war it took to get there.

But, you’ve noticed.

Others don’t hear the internal noise in your mind—the overthinking, the self-doubt, the rehearsing and rehashing that comes with being seen.

But you hear it loud and clear.

They don’t feel the way your stomach now drops when it’s your turn to speak. Or how your body has started to tenses before a performance, a meeting, a conversation that matters.

On the outside: calm and capable.
On the inside: bracing for impact.

It never used to be like this and you wonder why is it happening now?

This recent disconnect—between how you appear and how you feel—is more common than most people realize. Especially for women who’ve spent years striving, succeeding, caregiving, proving.

Reaching or being at the top of your game, or a recent setback can tap into failures, disturbing experiences or trauma.

Here’s the thing: it’s not merely a “mindset issue.” It’s not fixed by telling yourself to “just breathe.”

Because often, what’s holding you back isn’t a thought—it’s a physiological response. A subtle, automatic activation in your system that says:
“Visibility isn’t safe.”
“Don’t mess this up.”
“Remember what happened before”

This is where Brainspotting comes in.

Unlike traditional talk therapy, Brainspotting works directly with the emotional parts of your brain and nervous system—where these protective patterns actually live.

Through fixed eye positions and body awareness, we access and release the stuck emotional material that’s fueling the freeze, the overthinking, the disconnect between your real self and your public self.

Clients don’t leave a session with a script.
They leave with internal shifts at a deeper level. More clarity. A sense of internal permission to show up without the hidden cost.

If you’re ready to regain lost confidence, without feeling like you’re holding your breath underneath it…

If you’re ready to actually to reconnect with the talent that has felt dimmed…

If you’re done with shrinking from your own brilliance—

This is your invitation.

Read the full blog in the comments, then book a free consultation if you’re ready to explore more.

06/04/2025

You’ve done the work. You’re more than prepared.
But when it’s time to speak, perform, or show up—you freeze.

Performance anxiety doesn’t always look obvious from the outside, but it can feel overwhelming on the inside: thoughts scattering, voice tightening, blanking mid-sentence.

It’s not about capability. It’s about how your nervous system is interpreting and responding to this situation.

Brainspotting is a powerful, neuroscience-backed approach that helps high-achieving women release the internal obstacles that hold them back—from the bottom up.

If you’ve ever thought, “I know I can do this—so why can’t I do this?”... this might be your next step.

🔗 Read the full article now in the first comment.

06/03/2025

📣 Yes, you are capable.

Ever freeze mid-sentence, feel your heart race before a presentation, or leave an important moment thinking: Why couldn’t I just show up the way I know I can?

That’s performance anxiety—and it’s more than “just nerves.”
It’s your nervous system reacting to your presentation through the lens of past experiences, often without you realizing it.

Brainspotting helps access and release those experiences that block you—so you can share your presentation without pushing, grappling, or faking confidence. Just being present. Being in flow.

💡 Read the full blog now in the comments.