Welcome to Penny Wilkinson Counselling Services
Penny began her journey of understanding Addiction and Trauma in 2002...she found life's journey had her in the white water... she began a search for support and answers.
Penny completed a Master of Counselling specifically looking at attachment and developmental trauma and how this impacts emotional self-regulation and addictive behaviours. It is from this experiential learning, both of head and heart, that she can support you in your journey.
Neurobiology informs us how the synaptic shadows of our past directly influence how we experience our present reality. Trauma in the past impacts our current nervous system functioning. Somatic Experiencing (SE) therapy, created by Peter Levine in the 1990s, can facilitate stress reduction. SE aims to relieve and resolve symptoms of trauma and stress, which often lead us to feel stuck in past pains and defensive approaches. This therapy brings a curiosity to our body's sensations and responses to life in each current moment.
Penny combines a top-down approach incorporating rich life experiences and empirical education, with a bottom-up approach of body awareness to bring holistic healing allowing integration of the mind and body's natural processes.
Penny works within a trauma-informed framework and draws from a range of therapeutic modalities. Not a 'one size fits all' system. Penny has worked in the recovery addictions field for fifteen years. Her work is guided by the principles of Developmental, Systems and Attachment Theory.
She has trained in Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Family Systems Theory, Solutions Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) and Somatic Experiencing (SE). She has completed couple training with the Gottman Institute and uses the Gottman Method Couples Therapy in her practice.
Her primary focus is to bring healing by using the wisdom within the body's own nervous system to allow each human to live more fully alive in their unique way, no matter what the surroundings.
Penny believes each of us has an inner well of strength from which living water can be found when the body, the mind and the heart become a collaborating team rather than opposing competitors within the same body.
In 2020, at the beginning of Covid-19 hitting Australia, Penny and a team of specialised Addiction Counsellors (all with lived experience) opened a free of charge Group Therapy program for anyone struggling with Addiction. The Overcomers Place is a unique service providing care, connection and community for anyone seeking to overcome addiction.
“Living creatively and allowing new spontaneous combinations of experiences to emerge, as we live our lives, may be all about freeing our bottom-up processes and allowing their emergence to blossom.”
on a personal note...
Penny was born in Narromine, NSW, and raised on a merino sheep property in the 1960s. She attended boarding school in Sydney in the 1970s, before studying a Business and Accounting Degree. She established a successful career in the financial sector.
Married since 1989, Penny raised three children who are now adults living independent lives...where did all those years go!
She now lives within minutes of Sydney Harbour. She swims regularly and bush walks in the Blue Mountains.
Today, her faith and commitment to recovery have led to a different perspective on what she values. They afford her greater depth and compassion for her fellow sojourners, along with a wellspring of love to share in conjunction with her breadth of knowledge.
Penny has learnt to truly value life, love and the joy of living fully present...
Recommended reading: "Waking the Tiger" by Peter Levine, 1997 and “The Developing Mind” by Dan Siegal, 1999.
Peter Levine (2012) inspires us all ... "Don't Re-live: Renegotiate"
Penny’s mission is to support those she works with to take the steps needed to overcome, to build resilience, to re-engage with life and to live with HOPE.
PROFESSIONAL Development
Professional Memberships
Psychotherapy & Counselling Federation of Australia
