“Wounding and healing are not opposites
They’re part of the same thing.
It is our wounds that enable us
to be compassionate with the wounds of others”
-Rachel Naomi Remen
Have you ever felt that you worry all the time?
You feel overwhelmed and stressed out?
You explode towards your children, friends or family and hurt the people you love?
Sophia Van Vuuren is a Registered Psychologist with the College of Psychologists in British Columbia (#1659). I have a Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology and worked in Private Practice and Teaching for the past 25 years with many clients with a broad range of mental health stressors. I have been motivated by my scientific curiosity and human compassion to bring research-based psychotherapeutic knowledge in the field of Psychology to my clients to guide them with compassion, unconditional acceptance, respect and empathy, on the road to full recovery.
I trained in various Psychotherapeutic modalities to be able to meet all my client’s needs. I was trained in Rogerian Client -Centered Psychotherapy, Play therapy, Attachment Adaptation Therapy, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. I also trained in Family Systems Therapy to support families, children and teens in their relational problems. As a clinician and a parent, I found the attachment-based Parenting by Connection Program, based on the important Attachment Theory of John Bowlby, a significant helpful program for parents, children and teens. The Parenting by Connection Program provides parents with a clear roadmap of compassion, empathy listening, patience, play listening and knowledge to support their children through life’s obstacles to healthy, joyful adults.
During the middle 90’s, I started working with soldiers returning with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the war and I immediately trained in Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, which was a new psychotherapeutic intervention, developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro of the USA, with astonishing results for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder survivors. In 2001 after working with clients who suffered severely from early sexual abuse trauma, I also felt the need to expand my training in the body focused, Somatic Experiencing Therapy of Dr. Peter Levine to broaden my skills in Trauma work. I have been in awe about how gentle the clients can restore their resiliency from severe traumatic experiences and Attachment ruptures with this wonderful body-focused Therapeutic intervention. The clients’ needs and challenges determine the choice for the best psychotherapeutic model indicated as the best fit for the client. One Psychotherapeutic model does not fit all clients’ needs.
Recently I have also expanded my training in Couple Therapy from a behavioral focused model for Couples to Emotional Focused Therapy (EFT) of Dr. Susan Johnson as well as the Developmental Couple Therapy Model of Dr. Ellyn Bader and Dr. Peter Pearson, which also includes training in Attachment Therapy as the foundation for reconnecting in an intimate relationship.