EMDR THERAPIST IN ST. LOUIS

Steffeny Feld

A kaleidoscope is a symbol of possibilities and potential. 
The slightest movement brings a whole new image.

- Barbara Shanahan

Your world has been shattered by a painful experience. 

Your sense of self has been fragmented and rearranged in a way that is unfamiliar to you.  You want to understand yourself and your story so that you can feel whole again.

I get it.

 

I’m Steffeny.

(she/her/hers)

I’m a licensed therapist with a decade of experience working with clients of all ages and backgrounds. I have extensive training in Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR) and I love sharing it with the world because it is absolutely life changing! (And it is also a leading evidence-based therapy for processing traumatic or overwhelming experiences. ) 

More than anything, I am human and a fellow traveler on the journey. The most powerful thing I do in therapy is to share my human-ness. I name what it’s REALLY like to live through painful experiences and give permission to say the things that we don’t think we can say out loud to anyone. Because that’s how healing REALLY happens. 

I’m fierce about non-judgment and I have deep compassion because I’ve lived it. I’m a trauma survivor. I live with chronic illness. I am neurodivergent and a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP). I have experienced religious trauma, as well as vicarious trauma in my career as a helping professional. I know how hard these experiences can hit and that none of us can do it alone—no matter how hard we try and if you are like me, you have tried really really hard.

I work well with clients who...

  • Are creative, curious, and want to learn more about themselves and their world

  • Have a sense that painful experiences affect the whole person: heart, mind, body, spirit, soul

  • Want to experience more joy and savor meaningful moments in life 

  • Embrace the idea that healing is a journey, not a destination

  • Want to reflect on the chapters of their story so they can experience deeper healing and connection—to yourself and to the people you love

What’s it like to work together?

1. Get to know each other

I want to get to know you!  Tell me what you like to do for fun, who your people are and what you hope to get from the therapy process.  We’ll talk about what you’ve tried before, what’s working, what’s not, and what matters to you most.

2. Find what feels good

We explore the things that help you feel better when you are under stress, facing a difficult memory, and just having a bad day.  There are many approaches to help yourself feel better and we can work together to find the ways that work best for you.

3. Look at your story

We start with early life and childhood, as it forms how you see the world and how you see yourself.  Then we run through the important events in your life as if they were on a timeline or chapters in a book.  We consider how they impact you in the present.  This helps us pinpoint what we want to focus on in the processing phase.  It could be things from the past, stuff you are dealing with today, or worries about the future.


4. Processing with EMDR

EMDR helps you digest overwhelming experiences that have been stuck and haven’t allowed you to move forward.  I will guide you to notice the feelings, beliefs, body sensations, and images associated with a difficult experience.  Applying bilateral brain stimulation allows the brain to process this experience in a deeper way.  When processing is complete, you will remember the situation but no longer feel the intense emotions about it.  For more about EMDR, click here.  


5. Reflection & Wrap up

We will look back on our work together. Reflect on the process and what has been most meaningful to you. Check-in to see if we accomplished everything you had hoped for. Celebrate all your hard work and breakthroughs!

Why Kaleidoscope?

Painful experiences can shatter our world.  After trauma, loss, divorce, diagnosis,  we are left holding the broken fragments of our life.  Each piece with its own punch of pain.  

Together we can look deeply at those painful pieces so you can truly heal.  The power of the healing process is that the piece becomes one part of the bigger picture and not your whole world.  The picture you had of yourself won’t go back exactly to what it was. (But maybe it doesn’t need to...)  You won’t feel the pain of what was, but the excitement for what can be. In therapy we turn the viewpoint to see new shapes, patterns, a full picture that is beautiful.

moving, living, newness with every turn.  

My Approach is…

  • Shining light on and celebrating the strengths you have and what is already working.

  • Everyone is different. I work to create a therapy experience that is meaningful to you. We collaborate about what is going well in therapy and how we can change things to make it even better.

  • Meeting you where you are today and helping you journey to where you want to be. Everyone is welcome and everyone is worthy. I am a LGBTQ and neurodiversity affirming therapist and I strive to be anti-racist in and out of the therapy room.

  • We have all had moments that overwhelmed our ability to cope - that is trauma. Trauma-informed means being aware of how these experiences impact us holistically and responding in a way that prevents further harm.

  • I sincerely believe that we are all doing the best we can in any given moment. I believe therapy should be a judgment free zone so you can feel safe to explore your story.

  • Being present in the moment. Checking in on how the session feels. What is happening in the room? What is happening in your emotions, thoughts, and body? Learning to listen inside. Let that guide us.

Training & Education

EDUCATION and LICENSURE

  • Master’s of Social Work, Temple University

  • Licensed Clinical Social Worker (Missouri, Idaho, Pennsylvania, & Vermont)

TRAINING and CERTIFICATIONS

  • Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR) - EMDRIA Certified Therapist & EMDRIA Approved Consultant

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) - Trained in Basics Two

  • Advanced EMDR Trainings: The Flash Technique, DeprEnd Protocol (to end depression), DeTUR Protocol (to desensitize urges), Ego State/Parts Work

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS and CONNECTIONS

  • Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing International Association

  • National Association for Social Workers

  • Religious Trauma Therapists Network

  • Neurodiversity Affirming Therapists

  • LGBTQIA Affirming Therapists Network

Let’s connect.