The human mind is an incredibly complex entity. After decades of scientific research, we are only beginning to understand that trauma is psychological, physiological, and stored in the body. Trauma, which interferes with brain circuits involved in focus, flexibility, and emotional regulation, isn’t only linked to veterans returning from war. It is also connected to experiences such as sexual molestation, physical violence, racism, and poverty, all of which affect an individual’s capacity for pleasure, self-compassion, engagement, self-control, and trust. In Southwest Florida, individuals are finding various alternative therapies for relief and resolution of trauma at MY Self Wellness in Bonita Springs and A Holistic Approach in Fort Myers.

MY Self Wellness provides relief from mental health struggles through ketamine-assisted therapy. Considered the biggest breakthrough in mental health treatment in over 50 years it is also regarded as the safest and quickest path to gaining a new perspective on the many different causes of trauma.

“Trauma can be generational and unknowingly passed down through our lineage," says Charles Patti, Chief Brand Officer for My Self Wellness. "People who talk down to their children and make them feel worthless are unaware that they are embedding that message into a child’s psyche, which then gets passed down through the generations from parent to parent. For example, my grandmother never told my mother that she was proud of her. Even though my mother graduated from MIT, had an international public relations company, and accomplished many amazing things, my grandmother never expressed pride in her achievements. My mother did the same with me. It wasn’t until I healed through ketamine that I could tell my son I was proud of him. Now, I tell him that I’m proud of him all the time,” says Patti.

“Trauma blocks our ability to love. My experience with ketamine has made me a big believer that it helps end generational relational problems by healing past traumas and helping people love each other. It unlocks the loving, healing energy within you and allows it to flow again. When I could love and have compassion for myself, I started treating myself accordingly, from a loving place, and it spilled over onto the people around me. Five years of continuous sobriety and helping others have shown people that I’m not just trying to manipulate them with false behaviors, as is common with alcoholics and addicts.

“Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic, which means it separates the mind from the body, allowing the brain's neural pathways to be remapped and restructured, enabling neuroplasticity or new neural connections in the brain. It activates receptors that create dopamine and releases the neurotransmitter glutamate, setting off a chain reaction within the brain that affects thinking and emotional regulation.

“This means that past repressed traumatic experiences can be processed and released. Ketamine gave me the ability to love myself enough to want to better my life and change it because I hated myself for many years,” concludes Patti.

Dorothy Rodwell, a licensed marriage and family therapist who practices holistic mental health at A Holistic Approach in Fort Myers, is also trained in alternative approaches to trauma, such as Rapid Resolution Therapy and the Bio Acoustical Utilization Device. Experienced in treating trauma and trauma triggers, she recognized symptoms in Cindy Carfore, the owner of A Holistic Approach, earlier this year.

“Dorothy helped me resolve the trauma triggers in a few sessions," says Carfore, who in 2024 hadn’t recognized that her body was still carrying the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic and the devastation of Hurricane Ian in 2022. "I’m fortunate to own a business where there are holistic therapies that can help me. I was unaware that even years after a traumatic event, when I thought I was functioning normally, I could still be carrying trauma that could be triggered by a present event.”

Rapid Resolution Therapy is a psychotherapy developed by Dr. Jon Connelly to work with combat veterans and women who suffered sexual abuse. Rodwell says, “The approach has been shown to be effective with other root causes of trauma. Known as a painless methodology, it uses connection, creative storytelling, and guided imagery to decouple a traumatic thought from the body’s responses. This rewiring of the brain usually takes two to six sessions to complete. As a result, experiencing peace, calm, and healing becomes the new normal.” Dr. Connelly lives and works in Florida.

“The Bio Acoustical Utilization Device is a neurofeedback device with earphones. It uses specific binaural beat frequencies that are calibrated to you and disrupts overwhelming preoccupations in just one session—70-80 percent in most cases. Clients report that after this, they are confident they can heal more and no longer feel hopeless. At this point, other approaches may be considered,” advises Rodwell.

Additional therapies offered at A Holistic Approach that can address trauma include Quantum Energetics (QE) and the Quantum Healing Hypnosis Technique (QHHT). QE has been found to have profound and lasting results in addressing physical, mental, and emotional issues. QHHT is a hypnosis modality that allows individuals to access their subconscious mind. Developed by Dolores Cannon, a renowned hypnotherapist, it combines elements of hypnosis, regression therapy, and spiritual exploration to facilitate deep healing and self-discovery.

According to Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, author of The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, trauma is ubiquitous. He advises that only when trauma victims inhabit their bodies and learn to tolerate “feeling what they feel and knowing what they know” can they experience lasting healing and relief. This means healing takes time, lifestyle changes and maybe a village.

MY Self Wellness is located at 3541 Bonita Bay Blvd., Ste. 200, in Bonita Springs. For more information, call 239-908-9958 or visit MySelfWellness.com. 

MY Self Wellness - 3541 Bonita Bay Blvd, 200, Bonita Springs, FL

We have developed a highly effective psychedelic-informed approach to ketamine therapy. In our experience, the most profound shifts happen at higher doses. Instead of slower, low-dose... Read More » 

Charles Patti

A Holistic Approach is located at 15641 New Hampshire Ct., in Ft. Myers. For appointments of more information, call 239-433-5995 or visit AHolisticCenter.com. 

Dorothy Rodwell