Trauma Therapy

Experiencing something shocking, scary, or dangerous can be traumatizing. You might have experienced something threatening to your life or witnessed something threatening to someone else – whether physical, sexual, emotional, or a one-time event like a natural disaster, terrorism, or a car accident. You might have experienced complex trauma – the experience of having traumas occur over and over again throughout your life.

Everyone copes with trauma differently, which is why we tailor our treatment to support you. Some people use therapy as a safe space to discuss the trauma they experienced. Other people develop a more complex reaction, called Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD requires the support of the therapist to manage and overcome the highly distressing symptoms associated with it.

Symptoms of PTSD include:

Memories of the event (during the day or in nightmares)
Avoiding people, places, and activities that remind you of what happened.
Changes in behavior – taking more risks, having trouble focusing, etc.
Difficult feelings like shame, guilt, sadness, bad feelings about other people, hopeless, numbness, or an overall sense of negativity.
Flashbacks
Feeling easily startled, agitated, or having trouble sleeping.

Loss of interest in enjoyable activities.

If you relate to the list, please reach out for help. Therapists are trained in techniques that can help you live a life free of your trauma. You will need to meet with a mental health professional in order to receive the more accurate diagnosis and treatment.

During therapy, we will first develop a strong and safe relationship with you. You need to know you are valued and respected and that you are in a space where it is safe to begin working through your traumatic event.

We often start by getting to know you, your strengths, your interests, your social and family life. We will also begin to look at the types of symptoms you are experiencing and help you to soothe the especially uncomfortable feelings. As you begin to feel more in control of how your mind and body feels, we will start the process the traumatic event to the extent it seems necessary to improve your well being.

What we know about trauma is that it literally changes pathways in the brain. We will help you to reorganize these pathways so that they no longer get to call the shots in your life.

Our Trauma Therapists:

Center City, Philadelphia Trauma Therapy

Marta Cofone, LPC

Marta is a trauma informed therapist who has extensive experience working with people who have traumatic experiences and substance misuse. She is trained in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy) which is one of the most effective forms of trauma treatment. Marta is licensed in Pennsylvania and sees clients in person at our Center City office and through Telehealth.

To read more about Marta click here.

Louis HewetT, LPC

Louis works with adults to overcome aspects of trauma. He specializes specifically in working with queer individuals who have faced trauma and are working to overcome it. Louis takes a human centered and modernized psychodynamic approach to therapy which allows him to work with you to understand your ‘big picture’ and to work towards a big picture that feels more manageable. Louis sees clients in Philadelphia at our Center City office and through Telehealth. He can provide therapy to residents of Pennsylvania and Delaware via teleahealth.

To read more about Louis click here.

Ardmore + Main Line Trauma Therapy

Catherine Herling, LMFT

Catherine works with adolescents and adults experiencing symptoms of PTSD. If you or your loved one is experiencing intrusive thoughts about scary things, avoiding situations that remind them of an upsetting or frightening event, or if you have noticed significant physical and emotional reactions, like being easily startled after a traumatic event, Catherine can help. Catherine is also a trained family therapist and provides support to families that are working towards navigating and supporting their teen children through trauma and/or PTSD. She is especially skilled in supporting people who are neurodivergent through their healing journey.

To schedule with Catherine, click here.

Telehealth Therapists: New Jersey and Pennsylvania Trauma Therapist

Deirdre Cosgrove,LMFT

Deirdre is a trauma-informed therapist that works with individuals, couples, and families. Her career began working with families struggling with significant stressors and trauma. During this time, she was certified in Ecostystemic Structural Family Therapy: Philadelphia Child and Family Therapy Training Center to better help families navigate grief, loss, and trauma. Since, she has also become Certified in EMDR (one of the most successful forms of trauma therapist) through the Maiberger Institute. Deirdre is also trained in Level 3 Gottman Method Couples Therapy.

To read more about Deirdre, click here.

Easton, Pennsylvania Trauma Therapy

Kristelle Mallah, LMFT

Kristelle is a Licensed Marriage Therapist who provides trauma therapy in Easton, Pennsylvania and online through Telehealth. Kristelle is also licensed in New York and can provide telehealth for residents of New York. Kristelle provides trauma therapy to individuals and couples. She specializes in supporting people through pregnancy and postpartum trauma recovery. Kristelle is completed her EMDR Certificate with The Maiberger Institute and has been trained by PSI; Postpartum Support International in Advanced Perinatal Mental Health Psychotherapy. Kristelle is also an immigrant and is able to help people navigate traumas regarding relocation and living in a new space. She speaks English and Arabic.

EMDR Therapy for Trauma

A Better Life Therapy offers trauma therapy in our comforting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania office by highly trained and Certified EMDR therapists. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) therapy is an integrative, dynamic experiential method of therapy that is based on the belief that your brain has the ability to heal itself. EMDR therapy can benefit anyone who feels like they can’t fully move forward from an event that happened, and gets emotionally overwhelmed by these past experiences. When people have experienced distress in their lives and find they can’t fix it on their own, they turn to EMDR therapy.

You can read a more in depth explanation of EMDR therapy here.