Sustainability in Mental Health
Dalena Van Heugten |
TEDxOxfordBrookesUniversity
• October 2017
In my work, I wear a variety of ‘professional hats’, and I love to combine my passion for research with my passions for teaching and clinical work. I have studied the link between dissociative symptoms and sleep disturbances, and I found that sleep experiences precede dissociative symptoms; that both sleep loss and recreational drugs can induce dissociative symptoms; and that normalizing sleep reduces dissociative symptoms.
Clinically, I have worked as a therapist treating substance abuse disorders, sexual disorders, and mood disorders in adults, as well as developmental issues in young persons from deprived backgrounds. I am not only experienced in delivering cognitive behavioural therapy but also in teaching these therapeutic skills through courses and clinical workshops.