Trauma Therapy in Vancouver, WA

Heal from the Past, Find Peace in the Present. Compassionate Trauma-Informed Therapy for Adults in Vancouver, WA & Online Across Washington State.

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Moving Beyond Survival Mode

When you’ve experienced trauma, life can feel like a constant battle to stay afloat. Whether it’s a single distressing event or a lifetime of “small” wounds that have piled up, the impact is real. You might find yourself feeling constantly on edge, struggling with intrusive memories, or feeling disconnected from the people you love.

At Refuge, we believe that you aren’t broken. Your nervous system is simply doing its best to protect you. We offer a specialized, trauma-informed approach to help you move from surviving to thriving.

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What We Do in Trauma Therapy

Trauma lives in the body. We help you understand your “fight, flight, or freeze” responses and provide you with actual solutions to find calm and safety in your own skin again.

Time doesn’t heal all wounds—intentional care does. We provide a safe, non-judgmental container to process difficult memories so they no longer hold power over your daily life.

Trauma often dictates how we show up in relationships and how we view ourselves. In therapy, we work to dismantle old survival patterns and build new, healthy ways of connecting with yourself and others.

You are more than what happened to you. We help you integrate your experiences and move forward with a sense of agency, resilience, and hope for the future.

What We Won’t Do In Trauma Therapy

  • Just talk about your week endlessly
  • Stay stuck in the past
  • Blame your parents, partner, or boss
  • Focus just on positive thinking 

Instead, we’ll do the real work together.

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Trauma Psychotherapy for adults in Vancouver, WA

More Than Talk: Our Trauma-Informed Approaches

You can’t “talk your way” out of trauma. Because trauma is stored in the brain and body, we use powerful, evidence-based interventions designed to create deep, lasting change.

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Our Therapeutic Approaches

We integrate science-backed and experiential therapies to create deep, lasting change:

EMDR is a powerful, evidence-based therapy designed to help process and heal from trauma, PTSD, and deeply distressing experiences. Through guided eye movements or other bilateral stimulation, your brain reprocesses painful memories, reducing their emotional charge. This approach helps you move past traumatic events without feeling stuck in the past.

KAP is a cutting-edge therapy for treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, and chronic stress. Ketamine, used in a controlled therapeutic setting, can create new neural connections, enhance emotional processing, and provide profound insights. Combined with talk therapy, it can unlock deeper healing, helping you break free from stuck patterns and long-term emotional distress.

IFS helps you understand and heal different “parts” of yourself, especially those shaped by past wounds, trauma, or self-criticism. By connecting with these internal parts with compassion, you can release burdens, reduce inner conflict, and develop a stronger, more integrated sense of self. This method is particularly effective for those struggling with self-doubt, anxiety, or unresolved emotional wounds.

This approach focuses on healing relational wounds and improving emotional connections in your life. If you struggle with trust, fear of intimacy, or difficulties in relationships, attachment-based therapy can help you understand how early experiences shaped your patterns and how to build healthier, more secure relationships with yourself and others.

Creative Arts Therapy uses artistic expression such as painting, drawing, music, or movement to help process emotions and experiences that may be difficult to express through words. Engaging in creative activities can activate different parts of the brain, allowing for deeper healing and self-discovery. This approach is especially helpful for those working through trauma, anxiety, depression, or creative blocks, offering a non-verbal and experiential way to explore emotions.

Sand Tray Therapy is a hands-on, experiential approach that uses a sandbox and miniature figurines to create visual representations of thoughts, emotions, and life experiences. This method is particularly useful for processing trauma, accessing subconscious emotions, and working through complex life challenges. By creating and observing symbolic worlds in the sand, clients can gain profound insights and healing without needing to verbalize everything. It’s an effective approach for both adults and children seeking deeper emotional expression.

Emotional pain and trauma are stored in the body, not just the mind. Somatic therapy uses movement, breathwork, and body awareness techniques to help release tension, regulate the nervous system, and process stored trauma. This approach is especially beneficial for people struggling with chronic stress, anxiety, PTSD, and dissociation.

Alpha-Stim is a non-invasive, FDA-approved device that uses microcurrent electrical stimulation to improve mood, reduce anxiety, and enhance sleep. It works by balancing brainwave activity, helping to alleviate symptoms of anxiety, depression, and even chronic pain. This tool can be a powerful complement to therapy, supporting emotional and physical well-being.

Your life experiences don’t define you, but the stories you tell yourself about them shape your reality. Narrative therapy helps you rewrite disempowering stories, reclaim your personal power, and see yourself as the author of your own journey. This approach is particularly effective for those struggling with self-worth, identity, and overcoming past hardships.

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Why Choose Refuge Counseling & Wellness

At Refuge, you’re not just a diagnosis. You’ll find support and belonging in our deeply hospitable therapeutic center. We understand that seeking help for trauma requires immense courage. That’s why we’ve designed a space that cuts through the noise of impersonal mental health services to offer you a custom, science-backed strategy for healing.

Our therapists are highly skilled, trauma-informed guides who are passionate about seeing you experience real transformation.

Meet Our Team
Renee Thompson

Founder & Therapist, MA, LMHC, CPC

Therapists Specializing in Trauma Therapy

Renee Thompson
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Ryanne Smith
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How Trauma Therapy Works at Refuge

We get to
know you

Taking time to understand your unique story

We Make
a PLAN

Creating a customized therapy approach that works for you

We help
you GROW

With guidance and support, you’ll work toward healing and meaningful change

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Frequently Asked Questions About Trauma Therapy

It means we recognize that many symptoms (like anxiety or anger) are actually survival strategies. We prioritize your safety, choice, and empowerment throughout the entire process.

Not necessarily. With approaches like EMDR and Somatic work, we can often process the “charge” of a trauma without you having to recount every specific detail out loud.

We support adults ages 18 and up. We work with young adults, folks in mid life, and seniors. We also do couples therapy.

Refuge is private pay only and does not accept insurance.

Refuge Counseling & Wellness is out of network and therefore does not accept or bill any insurance. See each practitioner or service for current fees. A full, transparent breakdown of pricing will be provided for all clients.

Refuge Counseling & Wellness accepts credit card payments. Payments are due at the time of each service. 

Super Bills
Counselors at Refuge are able to supply you with a super bill. Super bills are a receipt with your diagnosis code that can be submitted to insurance for partial or full reimbursement for therapy services. Not sure if you qualify? Call your insurance provider and ask whether they will reimburse you for an out of network therapist. 

Health Savings Accounts (HSA)/Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) 

HSAs and FSAs can help you pay for therapy. Check your individual plan for details. 

Care Credit
Care Credit may be used to help with the cost of Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy or Intensives. Individuals must apply. Ask your therapist for more information. 

Everyone can benefit from having a dedicated safe space to process their life. Therapy is especially helpful for people dealing with unwanted symptoms from trauma, burnout, anxiety, or depression, for example. 

But you don’t need a diagnosis to come to therapy. Whether you’re suffering from PTSD, working through grief, or simply want to get to know yourself better, therapy is an investment in your personal growth and wellbeing. 

We want you to get results, so we recommend a weekly 50 minute session, at least until significant progress has been made. Some clients will choose the intensive model where either multiple sessions a week or full days of therapy can be most effective. As you make progress, sessions can be moved to every other week, then to monthly or as-needed maintenance sessions.

That all depends on the complexity of your concerns, how your nervous system handles changes, how much support you have, and how much time outside of therapy you can commit to the work. 

At Refuge, we are committed to real results, not quick fixes. You will likely begin to feel relief at the first session and in the early weeks, but the deeper change takes time.

We offer therapy at our office in Vancouver, Washington as well as serve clients across Washington state via video sessions. Our office is located at 13912 NE 20th Ave. Suite 204 Vancouver, WA 98686.

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We’re ready when you are

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