Healing Religious Trauma with EMDR Therapy in NYC

Have you ever had people lay hands on you in prayer, only to feel more pressure than peace? Religious trauma often begins in moments like this—moments meant to heal but that actually left deep emotional marks. EMDR Therapy NYC helps you gently process what still lingers.

Photo downloaded from Unsplash on 8/21/24

Updated on April 22, 2025

Religious trauma doesn’t always come in the form of one obvious event. Sometimes it shows up later—quietly, but powerfully—when you try to love someone, ask for what you want, or feel pleasure without guilt. I know this not only as a therapist but as someone who lived it. When I first began trying to date men, something in me kept freezing. I couldn’t stay connected. My nervous system was still wired for disconnection—from my desires, my body, even my own sense of self. In those moments, the residue of toxic theology and identity-erasing systems showed up not as a belief, but as a block to intimacy.

If this sounds familiar, you are not alone. And you are not broken. Religious trauma can shape how you feel, how you relate, and how safe it is to simply be you. But healing is possible.

As a licensed mental health counselor in NYC specializing in anxiety and complex trauma—particularly among LGBTQ+ individuals from religious backgrounds—I use EMDR Therapy in NYC to help clients heal deeply. If you're searching for a trauma-informed, affirming therapist who gets the intersection of faith, identity, and survival, this post is for you.

What Is Religious Trauma?

Religious trauma often stems from rigid or authoritarian belief systems that taught you to disconnect from yourself in order to belong. Dr. Marlene Winell coined the term "Religious Trauma Syndrome" to describe the emotional and psychological fallout that can follow harmful religious experiences. This might include:

• Guilt and shame around your identity or body

• Chronic fear of punishment, sin, or rejection

• Difficulty making decisions or trusting yourself

• Internalized beliefs that you're "bad," "dirty," or "not enough"

In a city like NYC, many people move here to finally be themselves—only to find that old fears, scripts, or wounds still follow them. You might notice this when dating, starting a new job, attending a spiritual service, or simply trying to feel at home in your own body.

That’s where EMDR Therapy in NYC can make a difference.

What Is EMDR Therapy?

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a powerful, evidence-based therapy designed to help you process and rewire how traumatic memories live in your brain and body. It doesn’t involve talking in circles or rehashing everything. Instead, it helps you revisit stuck memories with support, reconnect them to your present-day strengths, and finally move forward.

Unlike traditional talk therapy alone, EMDR creates space to shift the emotional charge tied to old experiences. It empowers your nervous system to say: "This happened, but it's not happening anymore."

EMDR Therapy for Religious Trauma: Why It Works

1. Reframes the Real Source of the Pain

One of the most profound shifts I see with clients is when they realize: "It wasn’t me. It was the system."

That moment when a younger part of them, often frozen in fear or shame, finally hears, "You were never the problem" is transformative. EMDR helps access those vulnerable parts and allow the wise, grounded Self to show up with care, compassion, and clarity.

2. Resolves the Anxiety Loop from Old Beliefs

Religious trauma often implants deep, false beliefs:

• "I'm not lovable."

• "My desires are dangerous."

• "I have to earn love or safety."

These beliefs don’t just live in your thoughts—they live in your body. EMDR Therapy in NYC helps challenge and transform those beliefs, not just through insight, but through emotional and somatic reprocessing.

This is how we go from knowing to believing you're worthy.

3. Works Even When You Minimize or Intellectualize

Many of us, myself included, learn to downplay our pain. We say things like:

• "It wasn’t that bad."

• "Other people had it worse."

• "I should be over this."

But that protective minimization is often a sign that it still hurts. EMDR gently supports you in staying grounded while exploring the parts that carry pain. It doesn’t force you to relive everything—it allows you to finally metabolize it in a way that lets your system feel done.

4. Repairs the Relationship with Your Self

What I love about integrating EMDR with Internal Family Systems (IFS) is that it helps you reconnect with the part of you that no religious teaching or traumatic experience could touch: your Self. That calm, clear, compassionate inner presence.

From that place, we can say to the parts that feel bad, dirty, or ashamed: You deserved better. You didn’t do anything wrong. You get to be free now.

This is the heart of healing.

Why NYC is Often Where the Wounds Re-emerge

NYC draws dreamers, doers, creatives, and seekers. Many of my clients come here looking for freedom and fresh starts. But here’s the paradox: as soon as we start to build the lives we want—love, career, community—the unresolved parts of us begin to speak up.

That’s not regression. That’s your system saying: I’m ready to heal now.

Whether it's in dating, new friendships, career visibility, or even trying to engage in a spiritual life again, religious trauma often resurfaces in the very places you're trying to grow. And that’s exactly why EMDR Therapy NYC can be a lifeline: it meets you right there, in the real-life places where healing wants to happen.

What to Expect When Working with Me

I'm a licensed mental health counselor in New York and Connecticut. I specialize in Anxiety and Trauma Therapy in NYC, and I’m certified in EMDR. But more importantly, I get what it's like to try to heal from something that doesn’t have a name in most circles.

In our work together, you can expect:

• A collaborative, affirming space for all identities

• Integration of EMDR with IFS, psychodynamic, experiential and somatic therapies

• Deep respect for your spiritual background and current beliefs

• Clear pacing, preparation, and grounded reprocessing

You do not have to come in with a perfect narrative. We start where you are, and build safety together.

Support Between Sessions: Coping, Grounding, and Spiritual Repair

Many of my clients benefit from:

• Visualizations like containment imagery or inner protector figures

• Grounding tools to regulate between sessions

• Spiritual reclamation practices, like rewriting harmful affirmations or connecting with supportive deities or ancestors

• Self-compassion rituals like journaling, baths, or time in nature

Whether faith is still important to you, or something you're renegotiating, we build practices that help you feel whole, not ashamed.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

If you've made it this far, your healing has already begun.

EMDR Therapy in NYC isn’t about pushing through or pretending the past didn’t happen. It's about reclaiming your relationship to yourself, your story, your body, and your right to be free.

I offer a free 15-minute consultation to see if we’re a good fit. Let’s talk. Your story matters. And if you’re ready to stop carrying this pain alone, I’m here to help.

You might also want to check out my post on political anxiety and information overwhelm if you're feeling emotionally overloaded by the world right now.

Let’s make space for your healing.

FAQs

• Is EMDR Therapy Effective for Treating Religious Trauma in NYC?

  Yes. It helps reduce the emotional charge of past events and supports reconnection with your present-day strengths and self-worth.

• How Many EMDR Sessions Are Typically Required for Treating Religious Trauma?

  That depends on your story. Some begin feeling relief in a few sessions, while others take longer. We go at a pace that honors your system.

• Is EMDR Therapy LGBTQ-Affirming?

  In my practice, absolutely. I work extensively with LGBTQ+ clients, many of whom carry religious trauma.

• Do I Have to Believe in Religion or Be Anti-Religion to Do This Work?

  No. Whether you're reclaiming your spirituality or stepping away from it entirely, EMDR honors your experience and what feels meaningful to you.

• What If I Don't Remember a Specific Trauma?

  That's okay. EMDR works even when the trauma is vague or not tied to one event. We follow what your body and nervous system want to explore, with safety always front and center.

You deserve a life that's bigger than your trauma. Let's begin.