- Attachment-informed
- Mindful practice
- Practical steps
About Marla
Marla Gentile brings forty years of clinical experience to her work with people facing stress, anxiety, trauma, grief, and major life changes. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC, and a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC, working from California. Marla emphasizes a respectful, down-to-earth approach and starts by listening to each person’s story.
Her style is warm and collaborative. She treats the person in front of her as the expert on their own life and helps them build on strengths they already have. Sessions aim for clear steps that feel manageable, whether someone is dealing with burnout, relationship strain, or the aftermath of loss.
Marla blends attachment-based ideas with client-centered listening and psychodynamic perspective to understand patterns that repeat across relationships. She also uses EMDR and mindfulness techniques when they fit the client’s needs and goals. The work often includes noticing bodily reactions, memories, and how past hurts affect present choices.
People come for help with things like codependency, communication problems, abandonment wounds, and caregiving stress. Marla also supports those coping with illness, aging concerns, career questions, isolation, and shame.
She encourages small, practical steps and gentle self-compassion as therapy progresses. To start, she asks people to complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to her availability.
How Marla’s Approaches Translate to Online Therapy
Attachment-Based Therapy focuses on the ways early relationships shape how people connect today. It looks at patterns of closeness and distance and helps people notice repeated reactions in relationships to make different choices. Client-Centered Therapy centers the person’s experience and values. The therapist listens deeply, reflects what she hears, and helps people set goals that matter to them. EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, works with distressing memories and reactions by combining focused attention with guided processing; it is often used for trauma-related symptoms. Finding the right approach is part of the work. Marla will talk with each person about what they hope to change and try methods that match those goals. That process is collaborative - together they decide which ideas and techniques feel most helpful. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life. It can reduce travel time, allow for shorter check-ins when needed, and let people join from different locations if they are traveling or live abroad. Because session formats are not listed in the profile, confirm the current options before booking so you know how sessions will be held. The focus remains the same whether work happens in person or online: understanding patterns, easing distress, and building manageable steps forward.Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
40+ years
Credentials
California, North Carolina, Florida, South Carolina
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Marla commonly address?
She works with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief, coping with life changes, compassion fatigue, relationship and intimacy-related issues, self esteem, and career concerns. Additional focuses include codependency, caregiving stress, and family of origin issues.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Her approach is collaborative and down-to-earth. She listens first, helps people name patterns, and supports practical steps tailored to personal goals.
What is her professional background?
She has forty years of professional work experience helping people with a range of emotional and life challenges. That experience includes work with trauma, grief, and long-term stress.
Which credentials and location apply?
She holds LPC and LPCC credentials and practices from California. Those are the professional designations listed for her.
In what languages can I meet with her?
Sessions are offered in English. International clients are accepted.
What formats are available for sessions?
Formats are not specified in the profile. Please confirm current session options before booking so you know whether sessions are remote, in person, or another format.
How much do sessions cost?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability. Sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule according to her availability.
Profile details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. Credential and registration rules differ between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.