I’m Chana Ceasar, LMFT, a Jewish therapist and the founder of Centering Healing. I specialize in attachment trauma, childhood sexual abuse, mother-daughter sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and complex developmental trauma, particularly the ways these early experiences continue to shape a woman’s relationships, nervous system, boundaries, and sense of self.
Sometimes what brings a woman into therapy looks like difficulty setting boundaries. She may know that she has already done everything she reasonably can for her mother, yet the moment her mother begins crying, she feels responsible for making things better. Another woman may understand that something she experienced during childhood was sexual abuse, but still struggle with shame, confusion, or a sense of responsibility that belongs to the person who harmed her. I am interested in understanding how those experiences developed, what they taught her about safety and connection, and why those responses may still be so powerful years later.
For Jewish women, these experiences can also exist within a larger context of family, community, faith, identity, and belonging. The expectations we grow up with, the meaning we attach to loyalty and responsibility, and the communities we depend on can all influence how we understand our experiences and what feels possible to talk about. I work with Jewish women across different levels of religious observance, including Jews of Color, converts, and women whose relationship with Judaism has evolved over time. My approach makes room for the complexity of Jewish identity, including the ways antisemitism, belonging, and experiences within Jewish spaces may intersect with personal trauma.
My Approach to Therapy
My work is relational, attachment-focused, somatic, and informed by developmental neuroscience. I draw from specialized training in Somatic Experiencing, the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, and infant-parent mental health, along with years of clinical experience working with trauma across different stages of development.
In therapy, we pay attention to what happens in the present as we explore earlier experiences. You might notice yourself losing track of what you wanted to say when you imagine disappointing someone, feeling responsible for another person’s emotions, or becoming disconnected from your body when a conversation gets too close to something painful. Rather than simply identifying these experiences as people-pleasing, freezing, or difficulty with boundaries, we explore what happens in those moments, how those responses developed, and what they helped you manage earlier in life.
Over time, our work supports your ability to recognize your own feelings, understand your body’s responses, and remain connected to yourself in relationships that once made that difficult. It can also create space to examine experiences that were minimized, silenced, or misunderstood, including sexual abuse within trusted family and community relationships.
Working With Me
I provide online, private-pay trauma therapy for clients located in California and Florida through Centering Healing. I am also based in Israel and offer professional consultation related to attachment, trauma, and early development.
For clients beginning individual psychotherapy through Centering Healing, the first appointment is a full 50-minute therapy session at my standard rate of $255. You can learn more about my clinical approach and schedule an appointment at https://centeringhealing.org.
