If your emotions feel overwhelming, unpredictable, or hard to manage—and you’ve been told you’re “too sensitive” or “too much”—you may be experiencing emotional dysregulation, a common symptom of anxiety and complex PTSD. Many adults with trauma histories or complex PTSD find it difficult to manage intense emotions, stay grounded in conflict, or trust their inner responses.
At my practice, I offer therapy that integrates skills from Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to help you find emotional balance, build self-awareness, and develop tools for staying present and calm.
Emotional dysregulation means it’s hard to manage your emotional responses in a consistent or healthy way. This could look like:
- Quick mood shifts or emotional outbursts
- Feeling flooded by intense sadness, anger, or anxiety and trouble returning to baseline after emotional upsets
- Shutting down or going numb under emotional stress
- Struggling to express yourself clearly during conflict
- Turning to numbing habits like overeating, scrolling, or avoidance
These patterns aren’t signs of weakness—they’re often adaptive responses to environments where you didn’t have safety, support, or space to feel and express emotions freely.
DBT offers a practical, skill-based framework for learning how to manage intense emotions, especially for people with trauma histories, anxiety, or relationship struggles.
The DBT model focuses on building skills in four core areas:
- Emotion Regulation: Understand and shift emotional patterns rather than being overwhelmed by them
- Distress Tolerance: Survive crisis moments without making things worse
- Interpersonal Effectiveness: Communicate clearly, set boundaries, and effectively manage relationship dynamics
- Mindfulness: Stay grounded in the present, even when emotions run high
Together, these tools can help you begin to manage emotions instead of feeling overwhelmed by them.
You don’t have to enroll in a full DBT program to benefit from these tools. I offer trauma-informed, individualized DBT-based therapy—either as a structured short-term intensive or integrated into ongoing work.
Our sessions may focus on:
- Identifying emotional triggers and patterns
- Practicing concrete skills to regulate emotions and calm your body
- Exploring how past trauma shapes current reactions
- Learning to respond (not react) in high-stress situations
- Using DBT tools like worksheets or reflection prompts to deepen learning
This work is especially helpful for adults with complex trauma, high sensitivity, or a tendency to feel out of control in relationships or under pressure.
As we work together, many clients begin to notice gradual but meaningful shifts, such as:
- Fewer emotional outbursts and faster recovery from stress
- Increased confidence in conflict or relationship dynamics
- Greater self-soothing and grounding skills
- More mutual, balanced relationships
- Less self-criticism and more emotional resilience
You don’t have to be in constant survival mode. Learning these skills can be a turning point toward reclaiming emotional safety and confidence in yourself.
There’s nothing wrong with having big emotions—especially if you never had the support or modeling to manage them. What matters is learning how to work with your feelings in a way that feels safe, empowering, and true to who you are.
Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, past trauma, or patterns that seem hard to change, you can learn to work with your emotions instead of fighting them.
I’m here to offer a structured, compassionate path forward.
📞 Call me: (516) 415-2071
🖥️ Book Online: Free 20-minute Consultation
📩 Email me: tilly.counseling@protonmail.com
for your free consultation.