Nancy is a clinical psychologist; she earned her Bachelor's degree in Clinical Psychology and her Master's degree at Nice Sophia-Antipolis University in France. Nancy believes that mood-related disorders, personality disorders, anxiety disorders, stress-related disorders, low self-esteem, and low self-confidence result from experiencing childhood trauma such as sexual and physical abuse, war, accidents as well as compromised attachment between the child and his/her caregivers.

 

Nancy uses schema therapy, EMDR; Mindfulness-based therapy, and attachment focus therapy. Nancy has been practicing for four years, during her clinical practice she has worked in several clinical facilities in France, Tunisia, and Egypt. Nancy has worked with a large number of torture, sexual and physical violence survivors, personality disorders, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and in the rehabilitation of psychotic patients.

 

She also has developed a stress reduction curriculum for paramedical and medical staff working in a dementia nursing facility (Les IRIS) and emergency department in Pasteur 2 hospital in Nice, France. She also worked for two months in the association des femmes democrats in Tunisia supporting the psychological rehabilitation of women victims of violence.  

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Therapeutic Approach

Schema therapy can help individuals identify the thought and behavior patterns underlying and perpetuating mental health conditions. The treatment approach integrates elements from Cognitive Behavior Therapy, attachment theory, and several other approaches, expanding on CBT through exploration of emotions, maladaptive coping methods and the origin of mental health concerns.

 

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) designed by Francine Shapiro in 1989, EMDR therapy facilitates the accessing and processing of traumatic memories and other adverse life experiences to bring these to an adaptive resolution. After successful treatment with EMDR therapy, affective distress is relieved, negative beliefs are reformulated, and physiological arousal is reduced. The client relives an emotionally disturbing memory while focusing on an external stimulus such as lateral finger movement of the therapist, bilateral audio stimulus and tapping.

 

Mindfulness-based therapy includes meditation and breathing exercises, it trains the clients to live in the here and now, accept their emotions and thoughts, reduce anxiety, maintain mental health wellbeing, enhance mental flexibility and coping skills.

 

Attachment Focus Therapy In early development, we rely on the attunement and response of our caregivers to help us regulate our nervous systems, leading to the capacity for healthy self-regulation as we grow older. If this was not possible or available to us, our capacity for self-regulation and secure attachment relationships with others can be affected as we learn that our needs do not matter and as our systems become primed to expect pain or abandonment.

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