About Holly

EMDR-trained & trauma therapist

for Children, Adults, and Couples

Somatic Experiencing Therapy & Depth psychology

 

You dream of the possibility of true connection, but you find it difficult to trust others because you have been burned so many times before.

You pour yourself into work or busy-ness to distract from your feelings.

You take care of everything yourself because it is easier this way than to be let down. You may be living with constant low-lying pain, whether it is tension headaches, digestive issues, or back and neck pain.

You have tried several different pathways, including talk therapy, holistic medicine, yoga, or acupuncture. You are tired of trying, but it is better to hold on to the hope that something will change than to not try at all.

The physical pain, along with the emotional pain, becomes a dull ache that you have grown accustomed to—always on in the background. However, life has gotten a little overwhelming lately, and you have been burning the candle at both ends. It is too lonely (and exhausting) to do this on your own.

Hi, My name is Holly Tu.

Holly Tu, AMFT 147984, APCC 17293 in California

I am a Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and an Associate Professional Clinical Counselor in the State of California, under the supervision of Ah Hyun Lee, LCSW. I am based in West LA, offering telehealth and in person appointments.

I am an EMDR trained trauma therapist.

I help those who are struggling to feel truly seen and heard in their relationships or work life, to become more aware of themselves, their patterns, and their body. I meet you where you’re at, but I also won’t be afraid to challenge the status quo. You will find relief, hope, and a warmth from feeling understood.

With consistent weekly therapy, you can gain the inner peace that comes from realizing that it’s not about what other people do or don’t do, but about how these events affect you in your body, and about what you choose to do in response.

Book a free consultation with me to learn more about my approach and how we can work together. You may find that after starting therapy with me, you will begin to treat yourself to little moments of joy, and it is these moments that propel you forward to more long-lasting change.

 

Holly’s treatment approaches in therapy

  • Somatic Experiencing

    You find yourself repeating the same patterns over and over again, but you can’t figure out how to change. Somatic Experiencing is a gentle way of working with the body to renegotiate trauma, regulate the nervous system, and develop more ease as you go about the world. It often looks like pausing to notice what’s happening in your body.

  • EMDR

    You have distressing memories or events that have become embedded in your psyche and self-perception. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy leverages the existing power of your mind to heal and process these disruptive memories. You cannot change the past, but you can change how your body continues to respond to the past.  

  • Depth Psychology

    You have done a lot of self-work and still yearn to better understand yourself. You know there is something more there to this depression, anxiety, fantasy, or feeling of being stuck. Depth psychology broadens the lens to look at what myths, dreams, and images you are being constellated by. I often incorporate parts work, too, to look at what the many actors on the stage of your life are up to.

  • Psychodynamic

    You find it difficult to forgive, but you also wish that you could have a different relationship with someone. You are stuck on an important decision and can’t figure out why. Psychodynamic therapy looks at how our underlying fears, motivations, and history influence who we are today.

  • Attachment-Based

    You have a lot of emotional volatility with your partner, or a recent life transition has shifted the way you relate to each other. Attachment-based therapy for couples looks at how our attachment styles (secure, avoidant, anxious, disorganized) influence how we are in relationships. Being able to communicate our needs and emotions goes a long way here.

  • Family Systems

    Your child has difficulty controlling their anger at school, but at home they seem like a different person. Family systems therapy looks at the bigger picture of how this child is trying to solve for something in their life. When the system changes, so does the individual, and vice versa.

 

EMDR Trained Therapist for Trauma Therapy

“What is EMDR Therapy? How Do I Know If It’s Right for Me?”

EMDR Therapy is structured and trauma-focused in an expedited process with lasting results. It encourages you to attune and pay attention to all aspects of your memories and your reactions in the present moment. All aspects refer to images, physical sensations, emotions, thoughts, and beliefs. You get to listen to and care for your inner child. Its process of healing also asks you to be creative in your unique way.

As an EMDR Trained Therapist and a Somatic Experiencing Therapist, I can help relieve those emotions and pain connected to your body. This somatic approach or attachment-based somatic techniques are essential to the healing of trauma. This will deepen the trauma work and address the complexities of childhood trauma, sexual trauma, and family trauma.

Get started with trauma-focused therapy and trauma counseling, today.

Take the first step toward healing. Schedule a trauma counseling session in San Francisco with our empathetic therapist. Your journey to recovery begins here.