Emotional Health
Enter ~ Embrace ~ Emerge
enter the world that exists within
embrace your heart and soul’s longing
emerge with the courage to live a new life
Carien Lubbe, PhD
Therapist/ Psychologist
I love what I do... I love helping people to search for a deeper purpose and a more meaningful experience of life.
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I offer therapy services from a holistic well-being perspective, based on 30 years of experience in psychology, education, guidance and counselling, and psychotherapy. I view psychology from the worldview of "soul-cology", as derived from Greek, namely the concept psychē meaning "soul, mind" and logos meaning "science, study".
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I believe in our innate ability to grow, to expand our experiences of life and to thrive. In today’s fast paced world, overload and overwhelm is becoming the norm of the day, and distracts from our own intuition and what we know about ourselves.
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​[My services are not for those with significant (severe) mental illness, if you are in crisis, or if you need a formal psychological assessment or diagnosis. I can refer you to colleagues who specialise in these areas.]
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A Sanctuary for your Emotional Well-being
​May we learn that the world within
is the path to live more in balance,
more intuitive,
where we will find solace and peace,
to be renewed
and venture out again
to create a better world.
From one human being to another,
we need each other,
in a space where we can be heard,
and listened to,
and therefore able to voice and explore the inner (often silenced parts) of ourselves…
Asking ourselves:
How do we live a life connected to self, others and this planet?
Living with a new consciousness
What matters to us?
What helps us feel well?
hence this home and sanctuary…
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Services: Individual Therapy
Individual therapy is one way to regain clarity and a deeper connection with oneself in an authentic, explorative and accepting space. It is a collaborative process where we work together to identify and change self-limiting thoughts, behaviour patterns and to recognise the impact and meaning of emotions, to gain new skills to manage whatever future challenges arise. We explore what is most important to us, what brings us happiness and satisfaction and what, on the contrary, undermines our well-being.
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I utilise both bottom-up (expressive and somatic work) as well as top-down modalities ("talk therapy"). We all require a different point of departure and want to be met on a unique and individual level. Various therapeutic modalities are therefore integrated according to your individual needs, although a good starting point is to begin from a somatic psychological perspective.
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Emotional health has at its cornerstone nervous system health, therefore I invite you to learn more about self-regulation and attuning to yourself. The goal of regulation is not to be calm, but to stay grounded and connected to yourself amidst the intensity of the experience. Regulating your nervous system is one of the biggest self-gifts during stressful times. Unresolved stress shows up in a variety of ways, such as:
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Cognitive/ Mind: racing thoughts, anxious and overwhelming thoughts, trouble focusing, and a mind that runs a million miles a minute; resistance, procrastination, and self-sabotage.
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Emotionally: Low confidence and self-worth, low mood, anxiety, feeling numb and disconnected, overreacting to the "little things", or anger and rage.
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Physically: Sleeplessness, fatigue, exhaustion, feeling burned out.
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Relationships: Trouble setting clear boundaries and getting needs met, and/or staying in toxic relationships.
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I work from the premise that all healing is innate. Our bodies are hardwired not only to survive but to thrive beyond events that are stressful, overwhelming and traumatic. I am fascinated by how the energy within us shifts as we start to feel safer externally and internally. With this comes growth, and connection to a sense of aliveness. In essence though, it’s about accepting and expressing all emotions in a healthy way, regaining a stable sense of self, reclaiming agency and control, and living with loving-kindness. Through focusing on inner resources and strengths, we focus on renewed possibilities to live a better life.
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“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.” Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
Background
A little bit more about me...
When it came to making a career decision in high school, I knew from deep within that I wanted to work with people. I started as a geography high school teacher, whilst furthering my studies in psychology.
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​After I completed my practical training, I practised for a few years but also started lecturing on a part-time basis. In 2002 I accepted a lecturing position at the University of Pretoria (South Africa) in the Department of Educational Psychology. It has always been an honour to see young students grow into confident practitioners, and for them to connect with their inner strength and wisdom. I stayed in this predominantly academic role until I accepted a full professorship at the University of South Africa in 2015. ​
As a practising professional, I have always been intrigued by our inner world of emotions and how we make sense of life. I enjoyed learning about Sandplay, and expressive modalities such as journalling, drawing, movement and breathwork, to access our inner landscape. Somatic Experiencing has had a huge influence on how I approach the work that I do and led me to specialise in how we can address trauma from a more embodied perspective.
We immigrated to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2016 and moved to Tauranga in 2018. We feel truly blessed to be part of this whenua. ​
QUALIFICATIONS, REGISTRATION & MEMBERSHIPS
PhD (2005) Educational Psychology, University of Pretoria with a thesis titled: The experiences of children growing up in same-gendered families (https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/26932)
Professional qualifications
MEd Educational Psychology, University of Pretoria (1999),BEd Hons Educational Psychology, University of Pretoria (1997), and BA(Ed) School Guidance and Counselling, University of Pretoria (1993)​
Registration and memberships
New Zealand Board for Psychology: NZPB Reg no 90-06379
The New Zealand Psychological Society Member no 10409
ACC (ISSC/ Sensitive Claims) Provider no 26CEXY
Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SE International)
Somatic Regulation & Resilience Practitioner
​Additional further training
Sandplay therapy (ISST)
Rational Behavior Therapy (RBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Solution Focused Therapy
Medical Hypno-analysis Level 1
Energy Psychology
Mindfulness based practices​