Jessica A. Hughes

I’m a trauma therapist who works with adults carrying the invisible wounds of childhood trauma: early environments that were neglectful, intrusive, or emotionally misattuned. These histories often echo in the present as anxiety, depression, people-pleasing, low self-worth, or relationships that leave one feeling unseen or depleted. Many of the people I work with sense something is “wrong” with them but can’t explain why. Together, we explore how those internal narratives were shaped, and how they can be softened, re-understood, and ultimately transformed. I am also a couples therapist and work with couples to improve their communication, repair relational injuries, and work towards rebuilding a sense of trust and intimacy. My couples work is informed my Relational Life Therapy and Emotionally Focused Therapy. These are modalities that deeply understand how our early environments and our biologically driven need to attachment impact our intimate relationships. In my individual work, I draw from contemporary psychodynamic theory, Internal Family Systems (IFS)-informed parts work, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR), and trauma-informed somatic modalities. This is not just “talk therapy”, we engage both mind and body, attending to the emotional and physiological traces of your history as they show up in the present. At the core of my work is a commitment to helping you understand your emotions not as problems, but as meaningful signals, traces of unmet need, memory, and adaptive wisdom. We will explore your internal world with compassion and curiosity, helping you reconnect with disowned parts of self and move toward greater clarity, integration, and freedom. I work with adults in Ottawa and across Ontario. If you would like to learn more, please check out my website or email me directly for a free 20-minute consultation.