MEET Emily

Welcome! My name is Emily Nash (she/they) and I am a Honduran-American social worker and associate trauma and relational therapist from Texas. I moved to Austin nine years ago when I started undergrad at the University of Texas. I received my MSW from the University of Houston where I was able to explore abolitionist social work practice and continue to use this framework in my practice of care.

As your therapist, I am committed to cultivating a safe space by welcoming all identities you hold with an understanding that you are the expert of your own life. The therapy room with me can be a political space to explore and honor every authentic part of yourself and your lived experiences. Colonialism, capitalism, and white supremacy are at the root of our collective traumas, and I always consider how these oppressive systems have contributed to your own trauma. As an anti-oppressive therapist, I believe that none of us are free until we are all free—Indigenous sovereignty, Black liberation, and abolition as dismantling all carceral and oppressive systems that are globally intertwined are core values of mine. Collective healing is possible with collective liberation!

My niche as a trauma therapist is working with adults who experienced chronic childhood trauma (this is often diagnosed as C-PTSD). This includes child abuse and neglect, attachment and relational trauma, and dysfunctional family dynamics. I utilize a bottom-up approach to therapy to address your trauma, meaning that I start with processing at the base of your brain, which is responsible for your automatic responses and memories, to promote embodied healing. I like to combine traditional talk therapy with experiential and somatic modalities.

As a relational therapist, I believe that the relationship between therapist and client is the strongest tool that can be utilized in therapy. When you’ve experienced trauma, you may find it difficult to connect and co-regulate with others, even your loved ones. You may be in an ongoing state of fight/flight or shutdown, feeling disconnected from the world. Although we exist in a society that promotes independence and self-reliance, we are wired to connect with others. We heal in community. As your therapist, I use curiosity, appropriate self-disclosure, empathy and even humor to develop a safe therapeutic relationship with you so that you may take the skills we use in therapy to your relationships outside of therapy.

My passion populations are young women/non-men of color who struggle with anxiety, perfectionism, people-pleasing and setting boundaries, navigating interpersonal relationships and dysfunctional families, shame and low self-worth, and somatic symptoms of nervous system dysregulation. Often at the root of these issues are childhood trauma, intergenerational trauma, and the trauma of surviving oppressive systems as a marginalized person. If this resonates with you, we might be a great fit for each other.

Outside of the therapy room, I enjoy spending time with my husband, chismeando with my friends, giving some love to our cats, practicing tarot, discussing astrology, and imagining a liberated world. I love reading novels and unabashedly love watching reality TV.  

Whether you’ve sought therapy before or this is your first-time seeking therapy, know that I’m so glad you’re here. The therapy room is a sacred space where I create a container for hurt and pain while also celebrating life’s joys and wins. Healing is an ongoing practice and while I don’t pretend to have all the answers, I am committed to your healing process. It would be such an honor to be a part of your journey!

Who I work with:

• Individuals

• Adults

• Adolescents aged 16+

Areas of expertise:

• Autonomic Nervous System regulation

• Boundaries/people-pleasing

• C-PTSD & PTSD

• Chronic illness

• Cultural/ ethnic/ racial identity & trauma

• Developmental/childhood trauma

• Dysfunctional families

• Finding community

• Foster care/ family regulation system

• Gender identity

• Immigration

• Incarceration/ institutionalization

• Intergenerational trauma

• Interpersonal relationships

• Life transitions

• Perfectionism/ overachieving

• Religious trauma

• Reproductive justice

• Sex & sexuality

Theories and modalities:

• Attachment Theory

• Feminist Therapy

• Internal Family Systems

• Mindfulness

• Polyvagal Theory

• Psychodynamic Therapy

• Relational  Therapy

• Solution-Focused Therapy

• Strengths-Based Therapy 

My fee is $130 per 50-minute session.

Therapy should be available and accessible to everyone. While I am out-of-network with insurance companies, I can provide a superbill for insurance reimbursement. Since I am an out- of-network provider, I offer limited sliding scale services to those who qualify. Priority is given to BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and disabled communities.