JoAnne Lockey Sarrault (she/her)

In today’s culture, women continue to face varied challenges, expectations, and responsibilities. From systemic oppression to discrimination to societal norms, there is no end to the pressure women face daily. Stressors also include body image, distinctive medical issues, and parenting issues, as well as patterns of guilt and shame. Whether you need help navigating family transitions or coping with unresolved trauma, a rewarding, successful, and joyful life is possible.

If you belong to ANY family system, whether your family of origin or that which you have intentionally created, there will be conflict, coming from external and internal sources as well as unresolved issues from earlier in life. Families may face even bigger conflict as they navigate how to resolve those conflicts. My role is to define and explain family roles, identify individual toolboxes, help establish healthy boundaries and create a safe space for the best resolution and outcome.

An attachment-based approach is used with families and individuals, to help clients mend or recover from fractured family relationships. I work with those separated from their parents in childhood, who suffered from any number of adverse childhood experiences, and victims of trauma at all levels. You learn to identify and source emotions, develop skills to regulate those emotions; all to build and maintain healthy relationships. There is an emphasis on trust and support.

Using a narrative style, we will endeavor to form a trusting relationship with parental figures or with me, the therapist, to begin establishing safety in relationships. From there, you are better prepared to form strong bonds in other relationships. Attachment-based therapy is used in conjunction with other forms of therapy.

Family/couples therapy is intended to reduce distress and conflict by improving interactions between people. It is an ideal therapy method for helping transitions that include struggling with an addiction, medical issue, or mental health diagnosis. Relationships are at the forefront: I focus on what goes on between the individuals rather than within one or more individuals.

Trauma-Focused Therapy is a specific approach to therapy in which we recognize and emphasize understanding how traumatic experiences impacts a person’s mental, behavioral, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. This type of therapy is rooted in understanding the connection between the trauma experience and your emotional and behavioral responses.