Dr Vanessa Contreras-Negretti
Director, Founder and Clinical Lead
Professional Profile
Vanessa is an HCPC-registered Practitioner Psychologist and Chartered Counselling Psychologist with many years of experience supporting people through a wide range of emotional and psychological challenges. She works with older teenagers (16+) and adults, offering therapy both online and in person from welcoming consulting rooms in Woodford, East London.
Known for her warmth, empathy, and grounded presence, Vanessa brings a deep commitment to creating a space where clients feel safe, heard, and respected. Her approach is collaborative and attuned, offering a steady and compassionate environment in which people can explore difficult experiences and move toward meaningful change.
Vanessa’s clinical background includes roles in primary care (IAPT) and secondary care services, as well as specialist work in Clinical Health Psychology within Occupational Health, where she supported NHS staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her experience spans both mild to moderate mental health difficulties as well as more complex, long-standing presentations.
She has developed particular expertise in trauma-informed care, working with PTSD, complex trauma, dissociation and the effects of developmental and relational trauma. Vanessa is a fully accredited EMDR Europe and EMDR UK Practitioner, currently training toward EMDR Consultant status, and has additional training in EMDR for children and adolescents. Her work integrates EMDR with parts and ego state-informed approaches, always adapted to the pace and needs of each individual.
All therapy begins with a thoughtful and collaborative assessment, where you and Vanessa can explore what brings you to therapy, consider your goals, and decide together on the best approach. Sessions are typically held weekly and may be short- or longer-term, depending on your needs.
Vanessa is committed to helping people reconnect with their inner strength, navigate life’s challenges with courage, and move forward with greater clarity, resilience, and self-understanding.
My Clinical Experience
My clinical experience spans a range of different services within the NHS as well as running my own private practice in East London.
I have experience working in Clinical Health within Occupational Heath providing psychological therapy to all hospital staff.
I have worked in IAPT services in primary care, dealing with mild to moderate difficulties, with a wide variety of presentations such as longstanding problems with depression, general anxiety, panic, obsessive compulsive disorder, phobias, social anxiety, pain management difficulties and PTSD.
My work in secondary care services has focused on more complex and enduring psychological issues, often presenting with an element of vulnerability or risk. In this capacity, I have generally worked in the area of mood, anxiety and personality difficulties with presentations such as treatment-resistant depression, long-standing OCD, complex trauma and personality disorders with a developmental and historical origin, among others.
I am a fully Accredited EMDR Europe and EMDR UK Practitioner and currently training towards becoming an EMDR Consultant.
Qualifications
- HCPC Registered Practitioner Psychologist.
- Chartered member of British Psychological Society (CPsychol)
- Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society (AFBPsS)
- Professional Doctorate in Counselling Psychology
- EMDR Europe and EMDR UK Accredited Practitioner, member of EMDR UK.
- Level 1 (CORE) EMDR Child & Adolescent Training.
- Member of Trauma Response Network UK (offer pro bono clinical services for victims of Mass Trauma)
- Masters Degree in Psychology
- Master’s Degree in Investigative and Forensic Psychology
- Master’s Degree in Cognitive Neuropsychology
- BA Linguistics
Specialist Training
- Working with EMDR and Dissociative Parts: Optimal Integration of Parts Models (EMDR Association East Anglia).
- EMDR & Parts work for Treating Complex Trauma: Somatic Techniques to Decrease Defensiveness and Facilitate Trauma Processing.
- Level 1 (CORE) EMDR Child & Adolescent Training.
- EMDR with survivors of Grooming and Sexual Exploitation (EMDR UK).
- Critical Incident to Mass Casualty: AIP and disaster Mental Health (EMDR Association East Anglia).
- Complex Trauma Certification Training Level 1&2 (CCTP/CCTPII).
- Complete IFS Therapy Immersion: Integrating the Internal Family Systems Model Across Clinical Applications.
- Intensive Trauma Treatment Course.
- Attachment-Focused EMDR Workshop (Laurel Parnell-PESI)
ADDITONAL Experience
Dr Vanessa Contreras is a Counselling Psychologist with a strong and diverse academic foundation, including three postgraduate degrees: a Master’s in Psychology, a Master’s in Investigative and Forensic Psychology, and a Master’s in Cognitive Neuropsychology. This extensive academic training underpins her many years of experience as a researcher in the field of psychology, and has equipped her with advanced expertise in research methodology, design, and analysis across qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches.
Vanessa has conducted original research across a range of psychological topics, including:
- Language processing in the brain
- Personality traits in individuals with synaesthesia
- Communication and situational awareness in the management of critical incidents by UK emergency services
Her doctoral thesis explored the psychological impact of operational stress and trauma among retired police officers in the UK, with a particular focus on their experiences of post-traumatic growth following adversity.
In addition to her academic research, Vanessa has worked as a university-based researcher, supporting both internally and externally funded projects. She has collaborated with multidisciplinary teams and contributed to research that informs clinical practice, public policy, and the development of psychologically informed services.
Vanessa has experience providing doctoral-level research supervision to Counselling Psychologists in training and currently offers research supervision and consultancy on both a short- and long-term basis. Her approach is supportive, collaborative, and grounded in a strong understanding of research design, methodology, and critical analysis across a wide range of psychological topics and approaches.
Research Experience
Vanessa has conducted original research across a range of psychological topics, including:
- Language processing in the brain
- Personality traits in individuals with synaesthesia
- Communication and situational awareness in the management of critical incidents by UK emergency services
In addition to her academic research, Vanessa has worked as a university-based researcher, supporting both internally and externally funded projects. She has collaborated with multidisciplinary teams and contributed to research that informs clinical practice, public policy, and the development of psychologically informed services.
Research Supervision and Consultancy
Vanessa has experience providing doctoral-level research supervision to Counselling Psychologists in training and currently offers research supervision and consultancy on both a short- and long-term basis. Her approach is supportive, collaborative, and grounded in a strong understanding of research design, methodology, and critical analysis across a wide range of psychological topics and approaches.
Community Engagement and Voluntary Work
- In addition to her clinical and academic roles, Vanessa is committed to contributing to socially responsible and community-based initiatives. She has worked as a volunteer mentor with Belong, a charity that provides CBT-informed support to young offenders with a background in violent or gang-related offences.
- This work took place within a London prison setting and focused on rehabilitation, emotional regulation, and fostering pro-social identity development.