Dr. Sara B Dupuis, Ph.D, LP, LMFT

01/26/2026

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When people hear “inner child,” they sometimes picture something fluffy or dramatic. In real life, it’s simpler than that. Your inner child is the part of you that learned what to expect from people, what love costs, and what you have to do to stay safe. Those lessons don’t stay in childhood though. They grow up with you. Those become trauma responses as adults.

As a therapist, I meet adults every week who are successful on the outside and quietly struggling on the inside. They don’t need a lecture about mindset. They need a better explanation of what’s happening in their nervous system and why certain situations feel so intense.

This is what inner child wounds are: unfinished emotional learning that still shows up as adult reactions.

A child’s job is not to be resilient. A child’s job is to attach. Children are wired to stay connected to the people they depend on. So when a child experiences something that feels unsafe, unpredictable, or emotionally confusing, their system adapts. Not with thoughtful choices. With survival strategies.

Here’s the clinical part of how inner child wounds are formed: when a child doesn’t have consistent emotional safety, the nervous system learns to scan for threat. The mind learns to predict outcomes. The body learns to brace. Then those protective strategies become automatic.

Healing from childhood trauma isn’t reliving your childhood. It’s meeting your present-day triggers with a new response. It’s learning how to recognize when a younger part is activated and bringing in steadiness, compassion, and clarity.

In my work, we often focus on three things:
• Awareness: noticing the pattern in real time without shaming yourself for it
• Regulation: helping the body settle so you can respond instead of react
• Repair: changing the relationship you have with yourself and the people around you

01/15/2026

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One of the biggest ways shame shows up is through self-monitoring. You’re always watching yourself. How you came across. Whether your tone was okay. Whether you shared too much. Even a normal conversation can turn into something you review later like it’s evidence.

From a clinical point of view, that comes from a part of you that learned early on that being accepted depended on staying alert. That part figured out that catching mistakes early might keep you from being embarrassed or rejected later. So it stays on alert all the time.

Another thing shame does is make you assume responsibility for things that aren’t yours. If someone is quiet or distracted, your mind goes straight to what you might have done wrong.

Shame also affects what you accept in relationships. You put up with inconsistencies and tolerate effort that isn’t mutual.

Shame can also make your emotional reactions feel bigger than the situation. A comment feels worse than it should. A small misstep sends you into panic or anger. That’s often a younger part reacting to old experiences that haven’t fully been processed yet.

IFS helps here by separating you from the part that takes responsibility for everything. That part usually formed when you were young and didn’t have many options. It took on too much so you could stay connected.

IFS doesn’t force you to speak up before you’re ready. It helps you build trust with the part that’s afraid so it doesn’t have to shut you down automatically.

It helps you to ask better questions:

• Which part is carrying this?
• What is it protecting?
• When did it learn this role?

IFS helps you step back into a steadier place inside where choices don’t feel like verdicts on your worth.

When you can pause and see shame as a 'part' instead of a truth, everything changes.
You can stop fighting yourself or collapsing into the belief that you are the problem.

12/26/2025

As the year comes to a close, we want to pause and say thank you.

Thank you for trusting us with your care.
Thank you for showing up, even when it was hard.
Thank you for allowing us to walk alongside you at your own pace.

Healing is not linear, and it looks different for everyone. We’re honored to be part of your journey and to continue this work together in the year ahead.

With gratitude,
The Stepping Stones Therapy Team 💛

12/26/2025

The new year often comes with a lot of noise about who we should become and how fast we should change.

For many nervous systems, that pressure can feel overwhelming rather than motivating.

Trauma informed growth starts by listening to what the nervous system actually needs. Safety. Predictability. Choice. Time. Regulation.

There is nothing wrong with you if pushing harder has never worked. Your body may be asking for a different approach.

This year, we will focus less on forcing change and more on creating the conditions where change can happen.

Healing looks different here.

12/26/2025

As the year comes to a close, reflection offers a gentle way to notice our relationships without judgment.

Some connections grew.
Some stayed the same.
Some asked for clearer boundaries.
Some were outgrown.

None of these outcomes mean something went wrong. They offer information about what felt safe, supportive, or no longer aligned.

Healthy relationships are rooted in self-awareness, compassion, and choice. Taking time to reflect helps us understand our patterns without needing to fix or force anything.

If reflecting on this feels tender, pause, breathe, and return when you feel ready. Healing happens at your pace.

12/22/2025

12/17/2025

The holidays can be meaningful and overwhelming at the same time. If your nervous system feels tired or on edge, nothing is wrong with you. This season asks a lot of us emotionally.

Consider this your reminder that self compassion matters, boundaries are allowed, rest is necessary, and support is something you deserve. Healing does not pause during the holidays. Sometimes it begins by slowing down and listening to what your body needs most.

If this season is bringing up more than you expected, trauma focused therapy can offer a steady place to land. You do not have to carry it all alone.

12/11/2025

There comes a point in healing when you realize the weight you are carrying is not a personal failing. It is your nervous system doing its best to protect you. Trauma lives in the body as much as the mind, and it quietly shapes your reactions, your relationships, and the way you move through the world.

Sara specializes in helping clients understand and transform these deeper patterns with powerful, evidence based trauma modalities. She is trained in Internal Family Systems, EMDR, Accelerated Resolution Therapy, and Brainspotting. These approaches reach the core layers of the nervous system where emotional memories, survival responses, and old protective strategies are stored. As the body begins to release what has been held for years, you feel more grounded, more connected, and more yourself.

If you are ready to explore trauma focused therapy, or want to know which modality may best support your healing journey, Sara welcomes you to reach out and start a conversation. Your next chapter can begin with a single step.