A lot of the ways you’ve learned to survive were necessary at one point, and they worked. But survival mode isn’t the same as living fully. Together, we’ll sort through what no longer fits and build new ways of being that align with who you are now and who you want to become.

Finding Your Voice (Even When It Shakes): Learn to Quiet the Inner Critic and Unlearn the Script of Silence. You’ll reclaim your power to speak up with clarity and confidence in a way that feels true to you.

Prioritizing Yourself (Even When It Feels Hard)
Your generosity is a gift, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of your well-being. We’ll work to dismantle the conditioning that says you always have to come last, so you can set boundaries and care for yourself even if the guilt doesn’t disappear overnight.

Communicating with Confidence (Without Losing Yourself)
If you’ve felt unseen, unheard, or dismissed, you’re not alone. We’ll build communication skills that help you express your needs and desires with honesty and strength so your voice isn’t just heard, it’s respected.

This is about unlearning survival strategies that no longer serve you, breaking free from expectations that keep you small, and stepping into your unapologetic self. You don’t need to shrink or dim; your full, authentic presence is the point.

Healing from relational trauma can feel overwhelming. You may be carrying the weight of something that was never your fault, and it shows up in ways that feel heavy and confusing:

• Shame, fear, guilt, or self-blame

• Feeling unworthy, unlovable, or “too much”

• Chronic pain or tension in the body (like headaches or stomachaches)

• Struggles in relationships, work, or simply feeling safe in yourself

Relational trauma isn’t always one big event. Sometimes it looks like a pattern of smaller experiences that leave lasting marks whether that’s:

• Overt abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological)

• Neglect or abandonment (emotional or physical)

• Witnessing harm or violence

• Racism, discrimination, or systemic oppression

These experiences can shape the way you see yourself and the world. But they don’t have to define who you are or who you’re becoming.

Together, we’ll work to:

• Understand how your past is showing up in the present

• Learn practical tools for regulating your nervous system and managing triggers

• Build skills to create and maintain healthy relationships

• Strengthen your resilience and self-compassion in ways that last

You’ve carried enough on your own. Together, we’ll find tools that help you feel steady, safe, and connected to who you are.

I approach anxiety as an experience, not just a diagnosis. At its core, anxiety is rooted in valid experiences; it’s our body’s way of trying to keep us safe. The problem is, what once served as protection can start showing up when we don’t need it, making everyday life feel heavier than it should.

Ever feel consumed by worry or fear, even in situations that seem safe? That’s anxiety at work. Our nervous system’s natural “fight-or-flight” response gets triggered by everyday stressors, leaving us feeling on edge or overwhelmed.

These are just some of the ways anxiety can show up:

• Overthinking and negative thought patterns: Playing out worst-case scenarios, even for minor situations.

• Decision paralysis: Struggling to make even small choices or second-guessing every option.

• Attachment challenges: Worrying about being abandoned, overanalyzing relationships, or needing constant reassurance.

• Difficulty completing daily tasks: When simple things, like leaving the house, feel overwhelming.

• Physical symptoms: Racing heart, stomach pain, chest tightness, sweating, “butterflies,” or shortness of breath.

• Sleep and focus issues: Trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or concentrating during the day.

• Irritability or restlessness: Feeling on edge, tense, or unable to relax.

Understanding how anxiety works is the first step, but it’s not the last. In therapy, we work together to build tools that help regulate your nervous system, quiet racing thoughts, and cultivate a sense of steadiness, allowing you to move through life with greater ease and confidence.

At Unfcked Therapy & Wellness, LGBTQIA+ people are respected and affirmed without question.

The people I work with bring many different things into the room: stress, anxiety, trauma, identity questions, perfectionism, life transitions, and relationship challenges. For LGBTQIA+ people, those same struggles are often shaped by unique realities like family rejection, discrimination, code-switching in unsafe spaces, or working through internalized shame. Therapy can also be a space to explore gender expression, labeling, coming out, and identity development without judgment or pressure.

My role is to hold space for all of it: the challenges, the healing, and the joy, resilience, and creativity that are part of queer identity. Here, you don’t have to explain or defend who you are, just show up and focus on what matters most to you.

The realities of growing up in Detroit and similar urban communities are complex and multifaceted. On one hand, survival in environments shaped by crime, violence, and systemic neglect fosters resilience, adaptability, and resourcefulness. These survival strategies are not inherently harmful; they represent strength in the face of adversity. At the same time, living in a state of heightened alertness or uncertainty can have lasting psychological and physical effects.

The term “Hood PTSD” is not a formal clinical diagnosis, but rather a way of naming the chronic trauma that can come from sustained exposure to unsafe environments and structural inequities. It reflects the combined impact of individual experiences such as witnessing or experiencing violence and the weight of intergenerational, systemic, and historical trauma, including racism, redlining, poverty, and disinvestment in communities of color. Together, these conditions can shape mental health outcomes and limit one’s sense of safety, stability, and possibility.

Therapy provides a space to process these experiences, address symptoms such as anxiety, depression, hypervigilance, and relational difficulties, and to honor the resilience that has already carried you this far. The work focuses on creating tools and practices that support healing, reduce the need to live in a constant state of survival, and open up possibilities for greater safety, stability, and growth.