You’ve been the strong one for so long. On the outside, you look like you’re holding it all together, showing up at work, keeping family responsibilities handled, being the one everyone depends on.
But inside? You’re running on fumes.
Your chest is tight. Your jaw aches from clenching. Your mind races at night no matter how tired you are. You overthink every decision, replay conversations, and still feel like you’re never enough.
This isn’t weakness, it’s survival mode. Your nervous system has been carrying too much for too long.
Most therapy teaches you how to manage symptoms. I help you actually heal.
With EMDR therapy, nervous system regulation, and emotional intelligence coaching, we’ll go deeper than coping skills so you can finally stop performing, stop people-pleasing, and feel safe living as yourself.
Break Free from Survival Mode with EMDR + Anxiety Therapy
I’m Olivia, & I Get It!
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, EMDR Therapist & Certified Wellness Coach
I don’t just know trauma from books. I’ve lived it, healed it, and I guide high-achieving women, cycle breakers, over-thinkers, and perfectionists through the same journey. My clients often say: “I finally feel seen and validated.”
You’re not broken. You’re just burnt out from carrying more than anyone ever should. And you don’t have to carry it anymore.
You’re Not Alone
You’ve probably gotten really good at:
Being “the strong one” who never asks for help.
Overthinking every decision until you’re exhausted.
Holding yourself to impossible standards of perfection.
Carrying guilt when you try to slow down.
Putting everyone else first while secretly running on empty.
It’s not that you’re broken. It’s that your nervous system learned long ago that survival meant doing more, being perfect, staying in control.
But now, those strategies (people-pleasing, perfectionism, overthinking) are keeping you stuck.
The Cost of Staying Stuck
When you don’t address the root, the symptoms multiply.
Anxiety that hums in the background, even on good days.
Sleepless nights replaying the “what ifs.”
Burnout that no amount of vacations or self-care hacks can touch.
Relationships where you give, give, give & still feel unseen.
Guilt any time you put yourself first.
And maybe the scariest cost of all: you start to forget who you are underneath the survival mode. The good news? This doesn’t have to be your forever story.
Safe Pivot to Hope
-
![Young woman lying in bed with her hand on her forehead, reflecting exhaustion, overwhelmed or emotional distress, capturing the moments clients often bring to trauma – informed therapy.]()
Anxiety Therapy (Weekly)
Find Calm in the Middle of Constant Pressure
Anxiety can feel like a constant noises you can’t switch off (racing thoughts, sleepless nights, second-guessing every decision, or feeling tense even in calm moments). For high-achieving women, it often hides behind perfectionism, people-pleasing, or pushing through exhaustion to keep everything together on the outside. Inside, it’s draining.
Weekly anxiety therapy gives you consistent space to slow down, release the pressure, and finally feel grounded again.
What We’ll Do Together:
1. Look beyond “just coping” and uncover the root of your anxiety.
2. Explore how your nervous system responds to stress and how old patterns of overthinking or self-blame keep you stuck.
3. Use tools like EMDR, nervous system regulation, and emotional intelligence practices so you can shift your responses in real time.
In Our Work, You’ll Learn How To:
1. Quiet the mental noise and sleep more peacefully,
2. Set healthy boundaries without guilt or burnout,
3. Make decisions with confidence instead of spiraling in “what-ifs.”
4. Feel steady in your body instead of living on edge.
Whether your anxiety shows up as irritability, racing thoughts, or feeling like you’re always “on,” therapy can help you feel at home in yourself again.
Schedule a Free Consultation to explore if Anxiety Therapy is right for you.
-
![A woman riding a beige scooter through the city, representing movement, transitions, and the journey of EMDR therapy.]()
EMDR Intensives (Focused Healing)
For When Weekly Therapy Isn’t Enough
Sometimes the weight of trauma, heartbreak, or old patterns feels too heavy for one hour at a time. EMDR Intensives give you 3+ hours of dedicated space to move through the deeper layers of healing without feeling rushed.
If you’ve been carrying trauma, grief, or stuck beliefs for years, intensives provide the focus and momentum to process what’s holding you back.
How It Works:
1. Preparation + resourcing: build safety, identify supports, and ground your nervous system.
2. Reprocessing: use EMDR with bilateral stimulation to release the charge of painful memories.
4. Integration: leave with tools you can use immediately to stay steady after the session.
Why Clients Choose Intensives:
1. Relief comes faster than traditional weekly therapy.
2. Release shame, guilt, or old self-beliefs that never felt safe to face.
3. Gain tools that support you between sessions.
4. Leave with a deep sense of calm and clarity that lasts.
If you’ve tried talk therapy and felt like you were circling around your pain, EMDR Intensives can help you break through instead of just coping.
Book an EMDR Intensive and experience focused healing.
-
![Awareness and insight gained through EMDR therapy for trauma healing.]()
Trauma-Informed Therapy (For the Past You Couldn’t Control)
Healing Patterns You Didn’t Choose
Old wounds don’t just vanish with time. They show up in the way you relate to yourself and others, feeling like you have to perform, hiding your needs, or fearing you’re “too much.”
Many of my clients grew up with emotionally unavailable, critical, or absent caregivers. To survive, they learned patterns like:
1. Overworking or overachieving to earn worth.
2. People-pleasing to keep peace.
3. Emotional numbing to avoid rejection or conflict.
Those patterns once protected you. Now, they leave you exhausted and disconnected from your true self.
What Trauma-Informed Therapy Looks Like:
1. Exploring how your nervous system still carries the impact of old experiences.
2. Using EMDR, emotional intelligence, and body-based practices to release what’s stuck.
3. Creating new patterns that feel safe, empowering, and aligned with who you really are.
This process isn’t about re-living your trauma. It’s about safely reprocessing so you can finally feel free from it. Over time, you’ll notice yourself:
1. Showing up more authentically.
2. Setting boundaries without guilt.
3. Feeling less weighed down by the past.
4. Experiencing real calm and connection in your body.
Schedule Your Consultation to see how Trauma-Informed Therapy can support you.
-
![Woman wearing glasses, sitting on a bed with her head in her hand, expressing overwhelm and mental fatigue, symbolizing the weight of grief and loss clients carry before finding relief in EMDR in anxiety, and grief therapy.]()
Therapy for Grief, Heartbreak & Loss
Because Grief Isn’t Just About Death
Grief shows up after heartbreak, divorce, miscarriage, family estrangement, or even the loss of the life you thought you’d have. The waves of sadness, anger, guilt, or numbness can make you feel disconnected from yourself and others.
Many of my clients describe grief as “carrying an invisible weight” that others can’t see, but they feel every single day.
In Grief Therapy, You’ll Have Space To:
1. Name and process emotions without pressure to “move on.”
2. Explore how grief impacts your body and nervous system.
3. Learn practices to honor your loss while helping you reconnect with meaning and hope.
Grief therapy isn’t about forcing closure. It’s about creating a safe place to be with the full truth of your loss while slowly moving toward peace in your own timing. Together, we’ll honor both your pain and your resilience, so you can feel lightness again, not because the loss disappears, but because you learn to carry it differently.
Start Grief Therapy when you’re ready to move through the weight of loss.
Here’s How I Help
I’m Olivia Lavelle, LCSW, EMDR therapist + emotional intelligence & wellness coach.
What sets me apart? I don’t just know trauma, anxiety, and perfectionism from textbooks. I’ve lived it. I’ve healed it. And now I guide other high-achieving women & men, cycle breakers, over-thinkers, and perfectionists through the same journey, without the shame or judgment so many of us grew up with.
My clients often say: “I finally feel seen and validated.” That’s the space I create for you: one where your story makes sense, your emotions are honored, and your nervous system finally feels safe enough to let go.
When you grow up without emotional safety, your nervous system learns to stay on high alert. Maybe emotions were ignored, punished, or too overwhelming to express. Maybe you had to hold everything together when no one else could.
So now, as an adult, your body still acts like it’s not safe to rest or slow down. Trauma doesn’t just live in your mind, it’s stored in your body. It shows up as:
Tight chest or stomach knots
Racing thoughts
Feeling “on edge” even when nothing’s wrong
Numbing out with food, work, drugs or scrolling
Trouble saying no, even when you’re exhausted
Trauma therapy in California helps you shift this pattern so you can finally feel safe in your own body.
How Trauma Impacts the Nervous System
How EMDR Actually Helps
Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR therapy works directly with your nervous system.
Instead of just talking about the past, EMDR uses gentle bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping, or tones) to help your brain reprocess stuck memories and release the emotional charge.
With EMDR, we get to the root of beliefs like:
“If I stop, everything will fall apart.”
“I have to be perfect to be loved.”
“If I let my guard down, I’ll get hurt.”
You don’t have to relive everything in detail. You don’t have to push yourself. EMDR helps your body finally learn: I am safe now.
Why Work With Me?
There are so many therapists out there, and you’ve probably read a dozen bios already. Here’s what makes me different:
I blend therapy with coaching. You’ll get the depth of trauma healing with the practical tools of emotional intelligence.
I’ve lived this work. I know the exhaustion of trying to hold it all together. That’s why I can sit with your story without judgment.
I believe in cycle breakers. If you grew up without emotional safety, I help you build the safety you never had within yourself.
Ways to Work Together
Whether you need deep, focused healing or steady weekly support. Want to go deeper between sessions? Explore my Shop for workbooks & healing tools. I offer different paths to meet you where you are:
Free Consultation (15 Min)
A gentle space to ask questions, share what’s been heavy, and see if we’re a good fit. Together we’ll clarify your goals and outline your next steps.
EMDR Intensives (3 hrs +)
When you’re ready for deeper, faster results, intensives offer extended time to process trauma and release old triggers. In just a few hours, you’ll experience focused, breakthrough healing that helps you feel lighter, clearer, and more like yourself again.
Anxiety Therapy (50 Min)
Weekly Therapy offers a steady, supportive space to work through overthinking, perfectionism, and anxiety. You’ll learn to calm your nervous system, set boundaries without guilt, and feel more present in your relationships.
What Sets My Therapy Apart:
I know you don’t need another space where you just vent and leave wondering if anything will change. My role is to guide you with clarity, compassion, and proven tools (like EMDR and nervous system practices) so you can finally feel steady inside, not just “get through” the day.
Understanding That Empowers
Together, we’ll uncover what your emotions and triggers are really saying, so you stop feeling confused and start feeling in control.
Tools That Go Beyond Coping
From grounding techniques to EMDR therapy, I’ll guide you through practices that help your brain and body release what’s stuck, so calm becomes your new baseline.
Healing That Lasts
This isn’t just talk therapy. By combining EMDR with trauma-informed support, we’ll get to the root of what’s weighing you down and create space for real transformation.
Therapy Can Help You:
Therapy isn’t about just talking through problems. It’s about creating a safe space to listen to what your body and emotions are trying to say, then using tools like EMDR and regulation practices to help you respond in new ways.
Finally feel your emotions instead of overthinking them.
Slow down without fearing you’ll fall apart or lose control.
Say no without guilt or the spiral of second-guessing.
Trust yourself enough to stop overanalyzing every decision.
Let go of performing and feel safe showing up as the real you.
Release the weight of old wounds so you can be present in your life again.
Therapy doesn’t have to feel confusing.
And if you’re not ready yet, explore my Treasure Talks Blog for practical, trauma-informed insights you can use right away.
Reach out.
We’ll talk for 15 minutes to gently explore what’s been heavy, what you’re hoping for, and what would help you feel safe to begin.Schedule Your Intake.
If it feels right, we’ll set up your first session. I’ll send a welcome email with everything you need so you can arrive feeling prepared, not pressured.Work At Your Pace.
Whether it’s weekly therapy or an EMDR Intensive, we’ll find a rhythm that supports your nervous system and your goals. Every step is guided by what feels steady and doable for you.Feel like you.
Over time, you’ll notice yourself feeling clearer, calmer, and more connected without needing to perform, apologize, or carry everyone else’s weight.
One client told me, “I never thought I’d be able to talk about my grief without breaking down. EMDR helped me soften the pain so I could remember without being overwhelmed.” If grief is part of what’s keeping you stuck, know that healing is possible. Learn more about Grief & Loss Therapy here.
Online Therapy for High-Achieving Women in California
I offer online therapy to women across California who are tired of overthinking, putting everyone else first, and never feeling good enough.
Whether you’re in Santa Monica, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland and anywhere in between…
I’m here to help you learn how to feel and express emotions because that’s the only way to release what’s been stuck.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Whether you’re ready for steady weekly sessions or an EMDR intensive, your first step is simple: book a free consultation call and we’ll talk through your needs and find the best path forward together.
"Emotions are messengers. We suffer when we silence them."