About Lauren Cortez, LICENSED MARRIAGE & FAMILY THERAPIST
Trauma Therapist in Denver for Women
Helping you move beyond overthinking, self-doubt, and survival patterns into deeper healing, self-trust, and more fulfilling relationships
Virtual therapy for women available throughout Colorado + California.
Trauma Therapist in Denver for Women Ready To Heal The Patterns Keeping Them Stuck
please Hear me when I say:
You are not broken. Your nervous system has just been trying to protect you.
If you're here, something in you is probably tired of understanding so much about yourself... while still feeling stuck in the same emotional patterns and experiences.
Maybe you've spent years being self-aware, reflective, and doing the work. You've journaled, listened to the podcasts, read the books, and tried to understand why you feel the way you do.
A lot of the women I work with are incredibly insightful.
They know their patterns.
They know where they come from.
They understand themselves intellectually.
And yet, they still find themselves stuck in overthinking, self-doubt, anxiety, emotional overwhelm, relationship struggles, or ways of relating to themselves that no longer feel aligned with who they are becoming.
At some point, the question becomes:
"If I understand myself so well... why do I still feel this way?"
Because healing isn't just an intellectual process.
A lot of the time, relationships are what bring to the surface the parts of us that are still longing to feel chosen, emotionally safe, connected, and fully ourselves.
But this work often becomes about much more than relationships alone.
It becomes about healing the deeper patterns underneath it all.
The overthinking, self-doubt, emotional overwhelm, attachment wounds, nervous system responses, and the ways you've learned to protect yourself, disconnect from yourself, or stay in survival mode.
Working with a therapist like me can help you move beyond simply understanding your patterns and begin actually feeling different.
More grounded.
More self-trusting.
More connected.
More emotionally steady.
So you can stop spending so much energy trying to figure yourself out and start feeling more present, peaceful, and fully yourself in your relationships, your inner world, and your everyday life.
Does This Sound Familiar? | Trauma Therapist in Denver
You know a lot about yourself already… but something still feels stuck underneath it all, like no matter how much insight you have, you still can’t fully relax into the life, relationships, or version of yourself you want most.
You can seem calm and grounded on the outside, while internally overthinking, spiraling, or questioning yourself more than you want to admit
You know you’re meant for more, but still find yourself shrinking, holding back, or struggling to fully step into the life you want
You feel exhausted from constantly trying to “fix” yourself, yet still don’t fully feel present, peaceful, or able to fully enjoy your life
You start questioning yourself in ways that don’t quite feel like you…wondering if you’re too much, not enough, or missing something everyone else seems to understand naturally.
You crave deeper self-trust, emotional safety, grounded relationships, and a life that feels more peaceful, connected, and fully yours
And underneath it all…
there’s a quiet frustration of knowing you’ve done SO much work. So why does it still feel this hard?
This is where I come in…
I’m Lauren, an EMDR + Brainspotting trauma therapist in Denver who helps women understand and shift the deeper emotional, relationship, and subconscious patterns that keep them feeling stuck, disconnected, overthinking, or questioning themselves.
In our work together, we focus on:
Healing the deeper subconscious patterns, emotional wounds, and nervous system responses shaping your relationships, sense of self, and overall experience of life
Working with patterns + triggers as they show up instead of just talking about them intellectually
Identifying and shifting the subconscious beliefs shaping your relationship patterns, sense of self, and ability to truly enjoy the life you’re meant for
Support that works with your body + nervous system, not just your thoughts
Building deeper self-trust so you can move through life feeling more grounded, connected, and less consumed by second-guessing
Expanding your capacity to experience love, joy, peace, visibility, rest, connection, and a life that genuinely feels good to be in
Allowing space for the messy, human parts of healing: confusion, grief, mixed feelings, uncertainty, without feeling like you have to “figure it all out” perfectly
Learning how to stay connected to yourself in moments that would normally pull you into anxiety, overthinking, or self-doubt
After sessions, there can often be a feeling of release, like a weight has been lifted
This work is about changing the way your life actually feels — so you’re no longer just surviving your life, but fully living it.
My approach to therapy for women in Denver, CO and throughout Colorado and California is focused on helping things actually move in a different direction—
not by trying harder or analyzing more, but by working with your patterns at their root.
specializing in:
Relationship Patterns
Trauma
Self-trust
Attachment Issues
Anxiety
Subconscious Limiting Beliefs
Nervous System Healing
Credentials & Training | Trauma Therapist in Denver, Colorado
I’m a licensed trauma therapist in Denver offering virtual therapy for women throughout Colorado and California.
Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Marketing - University of San Diego
Master’s in Marriage & Family Therapy - Touro University Worldwide
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist - California MFT162061, Colorado MFT.0003106
Brainspotting Phase 1&2 - Pacific Brainspotting
Expansion Brainspotting - Pacific Brainspotting
Rapid Transformational Hypnotherapist - Marissa Peer School
Integrative Nutrition Health Coach - Institute for Integrative Nutrition
Hi! I’m Lauren… a Trauma Therapist in Denver
(offering virtual therapy to clients throughout Colorado and California)
And I’m really glad you’re here :)
I became fascinated with a holistic approach to mental + physical health over 11 years ago. I’ve studied integrative nutrition, hypnotherapy, subconscious work, and honestly I’ve just been a student of life ever since. My passion for feeling genuinely GOOD in life and living it to the fullest in every area, led me to becoming a therapist and eventually trained in both EMDR + Brainspotting (one of my favorite supportive tools!)
This work is deeply personal to me. I know what it’s like to be self-aware, intentional, and feel like you’re doing everything “right”… and still end up in the same patterns. To understand where things come from, but not feel like anything is actually changing. And to start questioning yourself in ways that don’t feel true to who you actually are.
At a certain point, I started to realize that it wasn’t more insight that I needed, but a way to access and work with the deeper parts of myself that still felt stuck in fear, survival, self-protection, and old emotional patterns.
I realized that healing wasn’t just about understanding myself more, it was about becoming someone who could actually feel safe enough to fully live, trust herself, receive love, experience joy, and stop recreating the same emotional experiences over and over again.
That’s a huge part of why I do this work the way I do now. I’m a firm believer that we don’t need to learn how to hold the painful emotions - most of us are already very good at that. The deeper work is expanding your capacity for love, joy, connection… and actually letting yourself feel good. That’s the part I really love.
I love being a therapist, and I’m really glad you found your way here. You don’t need to have it all figured out—just a willingness to start. We’ll figure things out together.
Xo
Lauren
I’m a licensed trauma therapist in Denver offering virtual therapy for women throughout Colorado and California.
More about me as a human :)
I am a California native who picked up and moved to Colorado because I have basically trained myself to follow my intuition (even when it’s scary) and that’s where my intuition was pointing. So although I am a beach girl at heart, I’ve loved every second of exploring everything my new home has to offer :)
If it wasn’t obvious to you by now, relationships in all forms are my lifeblood. I am obsessed with my loved ones, in the best way :) I’ve learned to really love the “simple” things in life. A quiet mind, laughs with my favorite people, beaming love into the eyes of my 12 year old peeka-poo named Winston, a good home cooked meal, a good restaurant meal, a fancy cocktail, a solid game night, and the little things that really are the big things. Also, I’m proudly getting my honorary degree in behavioral sciences by religiously watching reality TV (with zero shame!) 🙃
I’m an extroverted introvert, I love content creation, and I love making people feel seen, undertstood + valued. I absolutely love being a therapist, and I look forward to working together :)
A HOLISTIC APPROACH…
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This is a widely known, structured, evidence-based approach that helps the brain reprocess painful memories so they no longer carry the same emotional intensity. We’ll work at your pace, ensuring you feel grounded and supported throughout. Learn more about EMDR here.
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Originally derived from EMDR, Brainspotting is a focused, body-based method that uses eye position to access and process stored trauma. It can help reach experiences that feel difficult to put into words, allowing your nervous system to release what it’s been holding. Learn more about Brainspotting here.
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I also incorporate parts work (IFS), which helps us understand the different “parts” of you that show up in relationships—like the part that overthinks, the part that pulls away, or the part that wants to feel chosen. Instead of trying to eliminate these parts, we’ll get to know them and curious about what they’ve been protecting you from and what they need to feel safe and supported. Learn more about IFS here.
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While these modalities are powerful, the most important part of this work is the relationship we build together.
Real change happens when you feel safe, seen, supported and genuinely understood + accepted. That’s where the magic happens :) -
For some, this work feels more supportive in a longer, more focused format. Therapy intensives allow us to stay with what’s unfolding and move through patterns more deeply, without having to stop right as things are opening up. Learn more here.
My core values
DEPTH OVER INSIGHT
Understanding your patterns is important, but it’s not the end of the work.
We focus on shifting what’s underneath, so things actually feel different in your life.
COLLABORATION
This isn’t something being done to you, it’s something we move through together.
Your experience, pace, and voice guide the process.
Safety
Real change happens when you feel safe enough to be your full, authentic self.
Our work is paced in a way that supports your system, not overwhelms it.
HONESTY
Growth requires being real about what’s actually happening.
I’ll meet you with honesty too (even when it’s uncomfortable) so you can see clearly and move forward.
Self-trust
You don’t need to keep second-guessing yourself.
This work helps you reconnect with your own clarity, instincts, and inner knowing.
Sustainable change