My Background and Motivation

I was originally trained as a physiotherapist, but early on I discovered that my heart lies in supporting people who experience not only physical complaints, but psychological ones as well. Over time, I specialized in working with people living with complex chronic pain.

Through my work, I have learned that stress regulation begins in the body. By pausing to notice what you feel and staying with those sensations in a mindful way, greater calm and clarity can often emerge.

At the same time, I have also experienced that body awareness is not pleasant or helpful for everyone. Especially when the body holds memories of painful or traumatic experiences, too much focus on bodily sensations can feel overwhelming. The expectation that relaxation should automatically follow can then have the opposite effect and become discouraging.

What moves me is how many people work very hard to change, without first understanding why they do what they do. In such situations, I invite you to explore together what keeps your patterns in place. This exploration often opens the way to greater calm, resilience, and freedom in relating differently to stress.

As a certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner®, I am happy to support you in my practice in Groningen. I work from an integrative approach, in which body, emotions, and thoughts become more attuned to one another again. You are welcome for sessions in Dutch or English.

You can expect from me that I will:

• create a safe and respectful environment in which your experiences can be explored, at your own pace

• listen sincerely and without judgment to your story and to what your body communicates

• support you with body-oriented exercises to help you become more aware of your bodily sensations and how they relate to your emotions, thoughts, and experiences

• help you develop greater self-awareness and understanding of your body’s own regulation

• provide explanation and insight into the interaction between body, emotions, thoughts, and behavior from a Somatic Experiencing® perspective

• regularly check in with you to see whether what we are doing is valuable for you

• work with confidentiality and in accordance with ethical guideline