Isaac GiovannettiFOUNDER, INNER COMPASS COUNSELING
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
Attributed to Carl Jung
At Inner Compass Counseling, care brings different approaches together around your needs.
My approach is shaped by my over five years of experience working in mental health and addiction treatment, including treatment settings and private practice. The therapeutic relationship comes first. I am direct and supportive, creating space for honesty, curiosity, and conversations about what is and isn’t helping.
I view what is often called “mental illness” through the lens of human experience. Struggling or feeling different from what society considers “normal” does not mean you are broken. Your struggles may carry something worth understanding about your experiences, your needs, and who you truly are.
Emotional pain can feel overwhelming and, at times, unbearable. The way we see ourselves and what happens to us shapes how we experience life and how we respond. In therapy, we can explore those perspectives together. As you begin to see an experience in a different light, new ways of feeling, acting, and relating to others can become possible. We take the time to understand what you are going through and find responses that feel more true to you.
TRAUMA & THE INNER EXPERIENCE
Two approaches. One thoughtful process.
EMDR and IFS can work together in trauma therapy, with attention to preparation, readiness, and your pace.
WORKING WITH MEMORIES
EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
EMDR is a structured therapy for working with distressing memories and the emotions, beliefs, and physical reactions connected to them. Past experiences can continue to shape how you respond in the present, even when you understand intellectually that the situation has changed.
What this can look like in a session
We begin with your history, current concerns, and grounding skills. When we agree you’re ready, we focus on a selected memory while using guided eye movements or other alternating stimulation, such as tapping. Throughout the process, we notice what changes and adjust the pace together. The aim is to reduce the memory’s emotional intensity and strengthen more balanced beliefs about yourself.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR PARTS
IFS
Internal Family Systems
IFS offers a way to understand the different “parts” of your inner experience: a critical voice, a part that strives to get everything right, one that pulls away, or one carrying hurt. In this approach, even difficult reactions are explored as attempts to protect you or meet an unmet need.
What this can look like in a session
In sessions, we slow down to notice these parts through thoughts, emotions, and body sensations, and explore their concerns with curiosity. IFS calls the capacity to meet them with calm, compassion, and perspective “Self.” The work aims to build a more trusting relationship with yourself, ease inner conflict, and help protective patterns become more flexible.
HOW THESE APPROACHES WORK TOGETHER
“We suffer not from the events in our lives but from our judgement about them.”
EpictetusEnchiridion, §5 · modern rendering
Understanding what protects you. Making space for what hurts.
IFS helps us explore protective responses and concerns about approaching painful memories. This informs preparation and pacing for EMDR. When appropriate, EMDR provides a structured way to work with selected memories, while IFS helps us stay attentive to your reactions. Together, we decide what fits your treatment.
For example, if part of you wants to approach a memory while another feels afraid, we make room for both before deciding how to proceed. We adjust the plan as your needs change.
A CONVERSATION TO BEGIN
Bring your questions. We can start there.
You don’t need to choose a method before reaching out.
