Tampa EMDR, Trauma & couples therapist
Dr. Alex Castañeda, LMHC
Licensed Mental Health Counselor specializing in EMDR, trauma recovery, and process addiction in Tampa, Florida
Licensed Mental Health Counselor — Florida | License #MH26071 PhD in Psychology | Advanced training in EMDR
About Dr. Castañeda
Primary Specialties: Individual therapy, couples therapy, trauma recovery, ptsd and c-ptsd, pornography addiction, relationship repair, anxiety, depression, spiritual concerns, religious trauma
Location: In-person therapy in Tampa + virtual therapy for clients across Florida
Approaches: EMDR, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Gottman Method, existential therapy, CBT/DBT-informed care, faith-integrated counseling
Background: Clinical practice across private practice and integrative counseling settings; adjunct professor and doctoral training in psychology and theology
Alex specializes in
Alex works primarily with adults, and with couples ready to do real work together. He is especially well suited to:
Adults carrying single-incident trauma such as a serious accident, a major loss, or childhood abuse, who want to reprocess and release it
Adults with complex trauma, life-cycle crises, and existential questions about meaning and purpose
Men and women working through pornography addiction and other compulsive or process-based patterns
Clients navigating religious trauma or wrestling with questions of faith and identity
Couples facing infidelity, broken trust, communication breakdown, or the pursuer-withdrawer cycle where one partner fears abandonment and the other fears being controlled
Couples whose individual histories are surfacing inside the relationship
Motivated, curious clients who want depth-oriented, long-term work rather than a quick fix
Alex’s approach to therapy
Alex does not work as the detached expert behind the desk. He believes attunement, the felt sense of being understood by another person, is one of the most healing forces in therapy, and the research in neurobiology supports him. Much of his work lives in the here and now of the relationship between client and counselor.
His EMDR work targets the memories, beliefs, and stuck emotional states underneath a problem, rather than only the behavior on the surface. For many people, compulsive patterns are less about the behavior itself and more about regulating something painful. When the roots are processed, the pull tends to lose its grip.
He also holds a view that not all suffering is meant to be erased. Some of it is the cost of loving well, of choosing the harder right thing, and part of the work is learning to tell the two apart.
What Alex Helps Clients With
Alex supports Tampa adults and couples experiencing:
Trauma and unresolved past experiences, including PTSD and complex trauma
Pornography addiction and compulsive sexual behavior
Relationship conflict, betrayal, and emotional distance
Anxiety, depression, and persistent shame
Religious trauma and questions of faith, meaning, and purpose
Identity shifts and major life transitions
Emotional numbness, disconnection, and loss of direction
Alex’s Background and Training
Dr. Castañeda holds a PhD in Psychology with a concentration in theology and a master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. His training and experience include:
Advanced training in EMDR for trauma and adverse life experiences, currently pursuing EMDR certification
A doctoral research focus on addiction and recovery, including how pornography use affects partners and the relationship as a whole
Couples work informed by Emotionally Focused Therapy and the Gottman Method
Faith-integrated counseling for clients who want it, alongside experience serving clients across the full range of belief
Experience as a college-level adjunct professor
He is also the author of Little Sufferings, a reflection on adversity, resilience, and healing.
He draws on more than counseling literature alone. His reading runs wide across psychology, philosophy, sociology, and theology, in the tradition of the field's founders, who were rarely confined to a single discipline. He is bilingual in English and Spanish, and as a Cuban American from Miami he relates easily to clients moving between cultures.
A Message From Alex
"Healing is rarely about fixing what is broken. It is about restoring what has been wounded. My hope is to walk alongside you as you find meaning in your story, experience healing at a deeper level, and move toward a life marked by honesty, connection, and purpose."
Ready to work with Alex?
We invite you to schedule a FREE CONSULTATION with us to begin your healing journey.
Frequently Asked Questions
I'm more drawn to porn than to intimacy with my spouse. Can therapy help?
This is far more common than most people realize, and it does not mean something is wrong with you or your marriage. Pornography often becomes a way to manage stress, escape pressure, or avoid vulnerability, especially for high-responsibility people who feel emotionally guarded. In therapy we look at what the behavior is doing for you, not just the behavior itself. It is usually tied to stress, shame, unmet needs, or unresolved experience. The work is understanding the pattern and helping you reconnect with real intimacy and desire.
How do I know if this is a porn addiction or just a habit?
The answer is less about a label than about your experience of it. Use becomes a clinical concern when it feels compulsive or secretive, when it conflicts with your values, or when it begins affecting your relationship, your emotional health, or your sense of integrity. Therapy gives you a confidential, judgment-free place to look honestly at the patterns, triggers, and emotional drivers. You do not need to arrive with the answer. Discovering it safely is part of the work.
Can EMDR help with pornography addiction, or is it only for trauma?
EMDR can be very effective for compulsive behavior, especially when it is rooted in past experience or emotional wounds. For many people, the behavior is about regulation rather than sex. EMDR targets the underlying memories, beliefs, and emotional states that drive the pattern, and when those are processed the urge often loses its intensity. The focus is healing, not willpower.
My faith matters to me, but my marriage is struggling. Can counseling include faith without being preachy?
Yes. Faith can be integrated thoughtfully and respectfully when it is meaningful to you and your spouse, exploring shared values, forgiveness, commitment, and spiritual closeness, without turning sessions into sermons. Alex works to strengthen emotional safety, communication, and trust, holding faith as one part of a larger relational picture rather than an agenda.
My marriage looks fine from the outside, but we feel disconnected. Is couples counseling actually worth it?
Yes. Many couples seek counseling not because everything is falling apart, but because they feel distant, stuck in the same arguments, or unsure how to reconnect inside busy, high-pressure lives. Stress, work demands, and unspoken resentment can erode closeness quietly over time. Counseling provides a structured, confidential space to understand what is happening beneath the surface, drawing on approaches like the Gottman Method and Emotionally Focused Therapy to rebuild trust and emotional connection.
Locations Served
Alex offers in-person therapy at our Tampa therapy office, conveniently serving individuals and couples across:
Tampa
South Tampa
Hyde Park
Downtown Tampa
Carrollwood
Westchase
Brandon
Wesley Chapel
Temple Terrace