Trauma and PTSD Therapy In Person and Online
Foster Counseling and Therapy provides individual therapy to empower you around your experiences with trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In-person services are accessible to the communities of Lake in the Hills, Algonquin, Crystal Lake, Huntley, and McHenry County, and online services are provided throughout Illinois.
Trauma is not only an event that took place in the past; it is also the imprint left by that experience on mind, brain, and body.
—Bessel van der Kolk
Trauma shows up in many ways…
Physically
Trauma can manifest physically, resulting in headaches, fatigue, digestive issues, or other stress-related ailments. Chronic pain or illnesses can also emerge or worsen following a traumatic experience.
Emotionally
Emotional responses to trauma can include intense feelings of fear, sadness, anger, guilt, or shame. Individuals may experience mood swings, irritability, or overwhelming emotions that are difficult to control.
Cognitively
Trauma can affect cognitive functions, leading to difficulties with concentration, memory, decision-making, and executive functioning overall . Intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, and persistent negative beliefs about oneself or the world are also common which can lead to low self-esteem and difficulty with confidence.
Behaviorally
People might develop new behaviors as coping mechanisms, such as increased substance use, withdrawal from social activities, changes in eating or sleeping patterns, or engaging in self-destructive behaviors
Relationally and Interpersonally
Trauma can strain relationships, leading to increased conflict, detachment, or difficulty trusting others. Individuals may feel isolated or misunderstood by those around them. Trauma can impact our attachment styles, and general trust of others.
In Our Overall Mental Health
Trauma can contribute to the development of psychological conditions such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges. These experiences can significantly impact everyday life.
Somedays you may feel like you’re drowning in it all. You don’t have to keep pushing through alone.
Our trauma-informed specialists are honored to work with you in unpacking your experiences; holding space to acknowledge the weight of it all; helping you to feel seen, real and believed; understanding, validating and addressing your unmet needs; healing your nervous system; and fostering your connection to the present moment with access to safety and security within.
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Sarah Pottle, LPC, ADHD-CCSP
Sarah provides a nurturing and eclectic therapeutic approach, implementing an Internal Family Systems (IFS) framework to help you gain insight into your experience with trauma and the ways in which your mind tried and still tries to protect you. She incorporates education and exploration around your parts, working to unblend them and heal the unhelpful and limiting beliefs and habits they’ve built while fostering you to connect with calmness, compassion, confidence and clarity in moving forward with your life. Sarah specializes in narcissitic abuse as well as complex trauma.
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Katie Higgins, LCPC
Katie provides an open and affirming approach with an emphasis on utilizing Trauma-Focused Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to assist you in recognizing ways in which you may have become fused with your trauma and its effects on thinking, feeling and interacting with others and the world. She helps you to identify narratives stemming from traumatic experiences and assists you in unhooking from them, soothing your nervous system, and recognizing how experiences influenced your values and how you can live your authentic values now.