Wairarapa Wellness - Wairarapa Wellness 41 Perry Street

Haere mai, I’m Viktoria Chamberman and I am the Wairarapa Wellness counsellor.

Wairarapa Wellness was established in 2019 after pulling together 15+ years of human development expertise.  I have a postgraduate qualification and am a member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors (MNZAC) since 2008.

I have extensive experience working as family counsellor, school counsellor (in Papua New Guinea), parent educator and working with couples and individuals.

I am a strong advocate for the use of counselling, be it for long term struggles that have impacted on a person’s life for decades or for temporary issues where people benefit from bouncing ideas with someone from outside of their immediate circle.

I practice from a trauma-informed position with the knowledge that many people have experiences of trauma – direct and historical – with consequences that continue to impact their life today. This is something we can address in therapy.

Time and time again I’ve had the privilege of being part of the positive change that often happens in counselling and I credit the partnership between client and counsellor for this, as well as the skills and abilities which people bring to therapy. While it often takes time for a person to make that first call, people are often more than ready for change when counselling begins.

Being part of this positive change is incredibly rewarding and what motivates me to continue this work.

My preferred way of practicing is by using narrative therapy, however I am trained in a number of modalities including solution focused therapy, exposure therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy and dialectical behaviour therapy, and my work with you will be tailored to your needs.

New to 2022 is the offer of therapy sessions that are held outside in a safe natural environment such as in a reserve, by a river or in a park. There is an increasing body of evidence that show how beneficial spending time in nature is for us people and overseas medical practices already prescribe nature to their patients as part of their treatment. Meeting outside have often been described as freeing and soothing by clients and those who often benefit from this type of therapy include those who feel stressed, are affected by depression and anxiety, and for those who feel stuck or affected by rumination of thoughts. Your safety and privacy is paramount and this is factored into the decision of where to host these meetings. If you are curious about therapy in nature, please visit my Facebook Page for more information on wellbeing and nature.

I am Swedish by birth but have called Aotearoa New Zealand home since 2003. I moved over the hill from Wellington in 2017 and live in beautiful Gladstone together with my husband and two children, a number of ducks and very noisy geese.