About Lauren Cortez, lmft
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, especially in relationships.
Maybe you’ve spent years being self-aware, reflective, and doing the work, but relationships still feel confusing, triggering, nonexistent, or like something just isn’t fully clicking.
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.
That’s why 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 ways you have learned to disconnect from yourself in order to feel safe.
Working with a therapist like me can help you move beyond just understanding your patterns and begin actually feeling more grounded, self-trusting, emotionally safe, and connected in your relationships, your inner world, and your everyday life.
DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR?
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?
Lauren Cortez, LMFT, Trauma Therapist in Denver, CO + CA
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.
I work with women who are deeply self-aware and growth-oriented, but still feel trapped in the same cycles, emotional states, fears, relationship dynamics, or versions of themselves they can’t seem to fully move beyond.
Because often, relationship struggles are only part of the story.
Underneath them are deeper patterns around emotional safety, self-trust, nervous system conditioning, subconscious beliefs, and the ways you learned to survive, protect yourself, and relate to yourself, others, and life as a whole.
Over time, these patterns can shape far more than relationships. They can affect your ability to feel present, trust yourself, receive joy, fully express yourself, feel safe being seen, or believe you can actually have the life you deeply want.
My approach is warm, grounded, and collaborative. You do NOT need to be fixed. You need someone who can help you understand what your mind and body have been trying to say all along, so things can actually start to feel different.
We’ll move at a pace that feels steady and supportive so you’re not overwhelmed, but you’re also not staying stuck.
I use EMDR, Brainspotting, parts work, attachment-focused therapy, and nervous system-based approaches, but the heart of the work is always the same:
helping you feel more grounded, connected, self-trusting, joyful, and fully yourself in your relationships and your life :)
How I work
There comes a point where insight alone isn’t enough.
When you understand your patterns intellectually… but still find yourself pulled into the same emotional experiences, relationship dynamics, or cycles of overthinking and self-doubt.
When you’ve done the reflecting, the processing, the trying,
yet something deeper still feels stuck.
This is where our work begins.
Not by trying harder or endlessly trying to “figure yourself out” —
but by working with the deeper emotional and nervous system patterns underneath it all, so things can finally begin to shift in a real, lasting way.
So you can feel more connected to yourself, more grounded in your relationships, and more able to actually experience peace, joy, ease, connection, and aliveness in your everyday life — instead of constantly living in overthinking, emotional survival, or self-protection.
specializing in:
Relationship Patterns
Self-trust
Attachment trauma
Anxiety
Nervous System Healing
My Training & Education
I’m a licensed trauma therapist in Denver offering virtual therapy for women throughout Colorado and California.
Master’s in Marriage & Family Therapy - Touro University Worldwide
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist (CA + CO)
EMDR Trained
Brainspotting Phase 1&2
Expansion Brainspotting
Rapid Transformational Hypnotherapist
Integrative Nutrition Health Coach
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