On the 5th of October we celebrated the graduation of eight new sophrologists in the English-speaking world. They will be bringing sophrology to more people in Bath, Berkshire, Birmingham, Kent, London, North Devon, West Sussex, and Switzerland.
Here’s a little about what they each plan to do with their sophrology qualification:
Anne Duthuit
Anne is currently a school teacher in North Devon. She plans to bring sophrology to teenagers who experience anxiety, especially from Year 10 onwards before GCSE or A- Level exams. Anne is also inspired to run sessions for teenagers and adults who face challenges due to a lack of confidence or perfectionistic tendencies in their studies, work and personal relationships.
Christine Halfpenny
Christine will be supporting people and more specifically young people who are struggling with their wellbeing and experiencing anxiety, lack of confidence, or are needing guidance to find their place in the world. She believes that there is a need for a gentle and mindful approach like sophrology that can give young people practical tools which they can use for the rest of their lives. Christine’s objective is to introduce sophrology to secondary schools to help young people improve their emotional resilience, their concentration, their motivation and performance which would then give them a positive framework to start their adult life.
Estelle Canazilles
As a certified sophrologist, Estelle’s mission is to empower individuals to harness their inner resources for a more balanced and fulfilling life. Sophrology is more than a profession for Estelle, it is a calling driven by her own experiences and the desire to help others transform their lives as she did hers. Estelle’s initial focus will be on sportsmen and women in rugby, rowing, tennis and cricket.
Jane Stevens
Jane is already offering sophrology session in the Kent hospital where she is Associate Medical Director. She intends to promote sophrology, under the auspices of the Creative Health movement, of which she is a National Champion. Aligning with the National Centre for Creative Health, and the National Academy for Social Prescribing, Jane hopes to bring a wider awareness of, and access to, sophrology to the UK.
Katie Reid
Katie is currently Deputy Director of Marketing for a university in Birmingham. Katie will establish her sophrology practice in the new year to support clients in overcoming life challenges, building resilience and living a fulfilling life in a way that is authentic to them. She will focus on women, young people, and working professionals, where she has a passion and also her own lived experience to bring, in three main areas: stress and anxiety; resilience, confidence and focus; Women’s health.
Marie-Marthe Blanc
Marie-Marthe is excited to bring sophrology to Bath. In addition to offering sophrology for wellbeing, managing stress and anxiety, Marie-Marthe has a strong sense of the need to care for the carers, parents in particular, with an appreciation for the knock-on positive impact their improved wellbeing can have. More info on her website here https://www.mariemartheblanc.com/
Steve Cooper
Steve is a Chartered Accountant, an economist and management consultant. He has always maintained a strong interest in alternative healthcare methodologies and has studied and gained qualifications in NLP, Timeline Therapy and Hypnosis all at Master Practitioner level. Now also a sophrology practitioner, Steve will provide personal wellbeing and self-care coaching to individuals, groups and corporations, offering one-to-one coaching, group coaching, corporate resilience coaching and wellness retreats.
Rebecca van der Merwe
Rebecca adds her sophrology diploma to numerous other coaching and complementary therapy qualifications. For Rebecca, sophrology will play an integral part in the services she offers to help children with learning disabilities, on the autistic spectrum, the neurodiverse community at large, and also people with chronic stress, burn-out and health symptoms manifesting as fibromyalgia, which can all be alleviated by better nervous system regulation.