Serving Santa Monica + all of California Online
Meet Olivia:
For women who look put together on the outside but feel overwhelmed, reactive or shut down on the inside.
EMDR Therapy Intensives for Women Santa Monica, CA
Hi, I’m Olivia
I help high-achieving, hyper-independent women who learned early how to hold everything together…while quietly falling apart inside.
Most of the women who find me grew up in homes where emotions were minimized, ignored, or felt unsafe to express. Some were physically abandoned. Others were emotionally left to figure things out on their own. Either way, you learned to be capable, self-reliant, and “strong” often at the cost of your own needs.
On the outside, you look put together.
On the inside, your nervous system has been carrying far more than it should.
I specialize in EMDR Therapy Intensives because healing trauma that’s lived in the body doesn’t happen well in rushed, stop-and-start sessions. My work is about helping your system finally experience safety, completion, and relief, so you’re not just functioning, but actually living with more ease, clarity, and emotional space.
Why I Do This Work
For years, I watched high-achieving, hyper-independent women do everything right…build careers, raise families, show up for everyone else, while feeling chronically overwhelmed, disconnected, or emotionally exhausted underneath it all.
Many had spent years in traditional therapy trying to “understand” what was wrong, without their bodies ever getting the relief they were working so hard for. I realized the issue wasn’t effort. It was the container.
When you’ve spent a lifetime relying on yourself, opening something painful for 50 minutes and then carrying it alone for a week can feel destabilizing and not healing.
That’s why I specialize in EMDR Therapy Intensives. Because when trauma has been shaping your nervous system for decades, you deserve more than insight at the end of a rushed session. You deserve enough time, safety, and support for your body to actually let go.
My Approach
I keep things simple, grounded, and deeply respectful of your nervous system.
Here’s what it’s like to work with me:
You won’t be judged, rushed, or pushed past your limits.
We name what you’ve been carrying—without minimizing it or pathologizing you.
We work with your nervous system, not against it.
Your body sets the pace, not your survival strategies.
You don’t have to explain why you shut down, stay busy, or struggle to soften—I already understand the function.
I bring EMDR expertise, trauma-informed care, emotional intelligence, and lived understanding into the room. But more than anything, I bring presence.
-
Master of Social Work, University of Southern California (2017)
Bachelors of Science, Arizona State University (2014)
-
Certified EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Therapist
Internal Family Systems (IFS) – Informed EMDR
Healing Emotional Neglect & “The Good Childhood” Wounds
EMDR for Complex PTSD and Dissociation
EMDR Intensives: Immersive Multimodal Healing
EMDR for Grief, Loss, and Mourning
Performance Enhancement for Complex Trauma
EMDR Research & Clinical Application in Complex Cases
Certified Wellness Coach II
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy(TF-CBT)
Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Trauma and Resilience Informed Care
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA)
Cultural Competency
A Little About Me Personally
Outside of the therapy room, I’m a mom, a creative, and someone who genuinely loves learning about people. I find joy in simple things like: good books, meaningful conversations, creating something from nothing, and spending time with people who feel like home.
My own life has taught me a lot about resilience, self-trust, and what it means to build a life that feels softer, more grounded, and more honest. Those lessons inform my work, but they never take center stage.
Everything I bring into this space is in service of your healing, not my story.
If you’re looking for a therapist who understands what it’s like to be the strong one, and who knows how to help your body finally rest, you’re in the right place.
Click the arrow below to learn more about my education & trainings!
When My Clients Complete Intensive Work, They Often Say Things Like:
“I feel like myself again.”
“I’m calmer and not reacting from survival mode.”
“I can set boundaries without guilt.”
“I finally understand what my body has been trying to say.”
“I’m not carrying my mother’s pain anymore.”
You don’t have to keep pushing through, because there’s another way and it’s allowed to feel easier.
If you’re ready for deep, concentrated healing instead of years of pieced-together sessions… I’m here for you, let’s connect.
FAQs About Working Together
-
I specialize in working with high-achieving women who feel anxious, overwhelmed, and never “enough,” no matter how much they do. Many of my clients grew up in homes where emotions were minimized, where they had to be the strong one, or where they learned to earn love through being helpful, perfect, or responsible.
If you struggle with overthinking, people-pleasing, perfectionism, emotional shutdown, burnout, or the pressure to hold everything together, you’re in the right place.
I help you understand the root of these patterns and not just cope with them, so you can finally feel calm, connected, and safe in your own body.
-
“High-achieving but anxious” describes women who appear put together, reliable, and successful on the outside…
but inside, your mind never stops.You may:
• overthink every decision
• feel responsible for everyone else
• struggle to relax or rest
• try to be perfect to avoid criticism
• feel guilty saying no
• collapse into shutdown when overwhelmedThis is more than stress… it’s high-functioning anxiety rooted in old emotional patterns. Therapy helps you learn how to feel safe without needing to perform, fix, or earn your worth.
-
Yes! absolutely!
Most of the women I work with don’t identify their experiences as “trauma” at first.Trauma isn’t only what happened… it’s what happened inside your body when you didn’t get support, safety, or emotional care.
You might relate more to:
• emotional neglect
• being the caretaker or peacemaker
• growing up with unpredictable parents
• feeling unseen, misunderstood, or dismissed
• being told you were “too sensitive”If your nervous system is stuck in fight, flight, freeze, or fawn, you deserve trauma-informed therapy whether your story feels “big,” “small,” or somewhere in between.
-
EMDR helps you reprocess the old emotional wounds that taught you your worth depended on being perfect, helpful, or strong.
Instead of talking in circles, EMDR works on the parts of your brain where:
• shame lives
• old memories still trigger overwhelm
• your nervous system keeps you in survival mode
• “I’m not enough” feels true even when you know it isn’tWe strengthen your internal sense of safety, self-worth, and emotional capacity so you can stop performing for love and start living from connection and confidence.
I offer weekly EMDR sessions and EMDR Intensives across California for deeper, faster healing.
-
Yes. I offer online EMDR, online anxiety therapy, and trauma therapy for women across California through secure HIPAA-compliant telehealth.
Virtual EMDR is highly effective especially for high-achieving women who prefer privacy, comfort, or flexible scheduling.
Clients often say they feel more relaxed, more open, and less pressured when doing EMDR from home.Whether you’re in Santa Monica, Westwood, Culver City, or anywhere in California you can access EMDR therapy with me from your laptop or phone.
-
I am an out-of-network provider, which means I do not bill insurance directly.
However, I provide superbills that you can submit to your insurance for partial reimbursement — typically 50–80%, depending on your plan.If you’d like to check your benefits, your insurance provider can tell you:
• if you have out-of-network mental health coverage
• what percentage they reimburse
• whether EMDR is covered