Discover how starting trauma therapy can support your own journey toward a happier, more fulfilling life.
2 therapists available in Norfolk
I believe healing happens through genuine connection, and I strive to create a warm, compassionate space where clients feel truly ...
About
I believe healing happens through genuine connection, and I strive to create a warm, compassionate space where clients feel truly seen, supported, and empowered to grow.
I’m so glad you’re here! I’m Sue Ann McCray, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Master’s degree from Boston University. I graduated in 2017, and I have 8+ years of experience supporting adolescents, teens, and adults facing trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, stress, relationship challenges, and life transitions. I also work with those in early recovery from substance use. I provide individual therapy, creating a collaborative, reflective space to build insight, resilience, coping skills, and personal growth.
My approach is client-centered, trauma-informed, and grounded in compassion, acceptance, and respect. I use evidence-based methods tailored to each individual’s needs, to help clients feel seen, heard, and empowered to pursue meaningful, lasting growth.
My care style is warm and collaborative. I create a safe, supportive space where you can feel heard and understood as we work toward meaningful change. Together, we’ll build coping skills, resilience, and self-awareness at a pace that feels right for you. You don’t have to face life’s challenges alone—I’m here to support you every step of the way.
Education and training
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As a therapist, I feel very fortunate to work in a field where I am helping and supporting others as they work on their personal g...
As a therapist, I feel very fortunate to work in a field where I am helping and supporting others as they work on their personal goals.
Sarah Stovall is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with over 15 years of broad experience in the mental health field. She is dedicated and compassionate about helping others grow, develop healthy relationships, and strengthen their overall emotional well-being. Sarah works with children, adolescents, adults, and families to address their personal challenges. She specializes in depression, anxiety, trauma-related issues, PTSD, relationship issues, parenting, and adjustment to recent life changes.
Sarah completed her Master's degree in Psychology at Phillips Graduate Institute in Encino, CA. She has since used her skills and knowledge with all types of clients, where she has observed positive growth and change in others who have overcome many challenges. Sarah utilizes multiple treatment modalities including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), motivational interviewing (MI), solutions-focused therapy (SFT), family systems (FST), parent-child relations, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), and rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT).
Sarah has a great understanding of many different challenges and life experiences that come to each and every one of us. She also has the tools and techniques to offer supportive change. Sarah has the genuineness, open mind, and willingness to work together with you to support whatever challenges you might be facing. She looks forward to you scheduling your first session.
You deserve dedicated time with a mental health professional — it can be life-changing.
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My go-to approach for helping people with PTSD/trauma therapy is to use a trauma-focused CBT approach. I feel it is important to have a gentle approach to PTSD because of the sensitivity involved with trauma. I allow my clients to guide how intensive the therapy sessions are with mindfulness around the touchiness of the subjects discussed.
I teach the following tools in PTSD/ trauma therapy:
I know a client is making meaningful progress in PTSD/trauma therapy when the client has a decrease in symptoms via their self-report, a noticeable increase in functioning, and the ability to discuss trauma subjects with a decreased negative emotional response.
Clients can supplement with time in PTSD/trauma therapy by:
To prepare for their first PTSD/trauma therapy session, someone can write down what they would like me to know about the experiences that have impacted them and what my clients have done thus far to cope with the trauma.
Trauma therapy is a therapeutic approach that focuses on treating the psychological impact of traumatic events on individuals. Trauma therapy helps people process and heal from their trauma by guiding them through their trauma in a compassionate and supportive way, allowing clients to feel the full scope of what happened to them and eventually move on from the event(s). This process helps people who have experienced trauma find ways to feel safe in their lives.
Trauma therapy will often require individuals to walk through their experiences in a controlled and compassionate setting (unless the client has a dissociative disorder) so that they can fully process the event, an activity that will allow them to move on from what happened and feel safe again. Thriveworks Norfolk therapists will also help clients learn healthy coping mechanisms to deal with their symptoms outside of therapy.
Thriveworks trauma counseling in Norfolk, VA is conducted both in person and online through online therapy. We encourage you to choose the option that works best for you.
If an individual is working through a single event that occurred during adulthood, they may only need a few months of treatment. However, in instances of childhood trauma or repeated traumatic events, therapy may continue over the course of years. Trauma therapy usually ends when the client believes they have met their therapeutic goals, however long that takes to occur. Thriveworks therapists in Norfolk, VA will continue to provide care for as long as necessary to help clients meet their therapeutic needs.
An abusive relationship is just an example of what a traumatic experience is. Maddie’s experience shows just some of the ways in which an abusive relationship can affect you during and after you’ve broken up. Trauma is associated with an event or experience that causes someone severe psychological distress. Like in Maddie’s case, it can also leave you struggling to move on.
If you are a victim and survivor of trauma, consider working with a trauma therapist at Thriveworks Norfolk Counseling. We have therapists, counselors, and psychologists who specialize in helping people heal from their traumatic experiences. We want to help you get back to a healthy, happy, and more successful version of yourself. If you are ready to get started, just give us a call.
Trauma therapy is designed to create a safe and open place for clients to talk with their therapist, counselor, or psychologist. The process is often difficult because you will be sharing your thoughts and emotions associated with the traumatic event in your life. Trauma therapists and PTSD therapists have the same goal in mind: They want to help you heal and/or gain closure from your trauma.
Your Thriveworks Norfolk Counseling trauma therapist will guide you in opening up about your trauma, processing it, exploring your emotions, and coping with symptoms. Some common symptoms associated with trauma and PTSD include:
The emotions you have may develop quickly or slowly. It all depends on your unique situation and the experience you had. Regardless, your therapist will work with you to process these difficult emotions safely and as slowly as you need. Let us help you navigate this journey.
As we just mentioned, we understand that every person’s situation is unique. That’s why your therapist will help you make important progress in healing from your past experiences and move forward at a pace that feels right to you. In addition, your therapist will help you:
In order to achieve these goals, your therapist may use a variety of different methods and techniques. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the more common methods used to help people in their healing journey. It allows the person to correct any harmful thought patterns and process their feelings related to the incident. Specific strategies such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and prolonged exposure are just a few examples.
Trauma, regardless of the specific event, makes living your normal life very difficult. Don’t wait any longer to press play on the life you want. Let us help you start enjoying life again.
To get started, give us a call at (757) 317-4315 and a scheduling specialist will set you up with an appointment that fits your schedule. You can also schedule your appointment online through our booking portal. We offer our clients evening and weekend sessions in addition to our normal daytime hours. Also, we have online counseling available because we understand that sometimes it’s hard to find the time to get into a session.
We look forward to hearing from you soon and starting this journey of healing together.
Includes individual, couples, child/ teen, & family therapy
Includes reducing symptoms with medication & management
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