Cynthia Schiffman-Szegda
MA, LLP, CCTS-I, CCTS-S, CMEMIIP-1 · Limited Licensed Psychologist · Michigan
Trauma therapy that works with your body — not just your words.
If you've tried therapy before and still feel stuck — still reactive, still exhausted, still bracing — it's not because you did it wrong. It may be that the approach wasn't reaching where the trauma actually lives: in your nervous system. That's where I work.
At a Glance
Resolve trauma without retelling your story
I specialize in trauma treatment using a strengths-based, forward-facing, bottom-up approach. What that means in plain language: I don't ask you to relive your worst moments. Instead, we work with what's happening in your body and nervous system right now — the tension, the hypervigilance, the shutting down — and we build safety from the inside out.
I use Multichannel Eye Movement and Integration (MEMI), a content-free, brain-based approach that can resolve longstanding trauma responses without requiring you to narrate what happened. For many clients, this is the difference between therapy that felt like talking in circles and therapy that actually changes how they feel in their body.
How I think about trauma
I understand trauma responses as biologically natural. Your brain is doing exactly what it was designed to do — it just hasn't gotten the signal that the danger has passed. I teach clients how this works and what it means. Then we work together to rewire the nervous system for safety, giving you control of your own responses.
Every individual has the key to their own healing. You are the expert on yourself. My job is to help you discover your own healing journey and guide you along the way. If a tool doesn't feel right, I put it back and offer something else. Sometimes the best thing I can do is simply sit with you in the hard stuff so you don't have to sit there alone.
Who I work with
I work with adults navigating depression, anxiety, life stress, and particularly complex trauma — including PTSD, dissociation, sexual abuse, and domestic violence. I also have experience administering neuropsychological evaluations including ADHD, IQ, memory, traumatic brain injury, autism, and parenting assessments.
I welcome everyone from all walks of life, including LGBTQIA+ and gender non-conforming individuals, people of all spiritual and religious backgrounds, culturally diverse communities, and neurodivergent clients.
You've tried therapy before. It helped — but something still feels stuck.
A Different Kind of Trauma Therapy
That's not a failure. Most traditional therapy works top-down: talking, analyzing, understanding. But trauma doesn't live in the part of the brain that talks. It lives in the part that reacts. Body-based trauma therapy reaches where talk therapy can't — and MEMI does it without asking you to retell your story.
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Specialties
- Complex trauma & PTSD
- Dissociation
- Sexual abuse & exploitation
- Domestic violence
- Anxiety & depression
- Life stress & transitions
- Neuropsychological evaluation
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Modalities
- MEMI (Multichannel Eye Movement & Integration)
- Body-based trauma therapy
- Nervous system regulation
- CBT
- Strengths-based approach
- Eclectic / integrative
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Insurance & Access
- BCBS & Blue Care Network
- Aetna
- Priority Health
- Private pay
- Telehealth — online only
- Michigan
Ready to try a different approach?
If you've been through therapy before and still feel stuck in trauma responses, body-based trauma work may be what's been missing. Text us or fill out our request form — no phone calls needed. Please tell us your insurance so we can verify your benefits before your first session.