I am Dr Anouk Houdijk, a Clinical Psychologist with over 20 years of experience working with teenagers, families and adults across anxiety, trauma and emotional regulation.
I trained at the Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London and have worked across some of the most complex and specialised NHS services in the country, from adolescent trauma and eating disorders to psychosis, addictions and veteran mental health. I currently work two days a week with OpCourage, the NHS service for veterans, alongside my private practice at the Newtown Clinic in Marlow, which has run on word of mouth alone since 2018.
What has stayed constant across all of it is a single belief: most of what people struggle with makes complete sense when you understand the nervous system, the impact of early experiences and the way our minds and bodies respond to stress and threat. You are not weak. You are not beyond help. You are responding in a way that made sense at some point, and that can change.
My Story
I grew up moving constantly. By the age of 13 I had been in 13 different schools across different countries, languages and curriculums. I was often behind academically, socially adrift and at times the target of bullying I never really understood. I internalised all of it as evidence that something was fundamentally wrong with me.
It was not until much later that I understood I was anxious, and that everything I had experienced made complete psychological sense. That realisation changed the way I thought about myself, and it is the same realisation I want to offer the people I work with.
That background did two things. It made me deeply curious about people and why we do what we do. And it gave me a lived, embodied understanding of what it feels like to not quite fit, to feel behind, to doubt yourself. The empathy I bring to this work is not performed. It is part of who I am.
As I trained and worked across NHS services, schools and specialist clinics, I found myself drawn to two groups who are often underserved: teenagers navigating the pressures of growing up in a world that moves faster than their nervous systems can keep up with, and adults who are still carrying the weight of experiences from earlier in their lives.
This is the work I was built for. And Dr Anouk Online was built to make it more accessible.
My Approach
Everything I do is grounded in the approaches that the evidence shows actually work for anxiety and trauma. But what drives my choice of approach is always the person in front of me, not a formula.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT): To understand how thoughts, feelings, and behaviours interact and how we can shift them.
Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT): To build inner safety and self-kindness, especially when shame or self-criticism are present.
Attachment and Trauma-Informed Models: To explore how early experiences shape emotional patterns and relationships — and how we can safely rewire them.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing): A powerful, evidence-based approach to healing trauma and reducing the emotional impact of difficult experiences.
Mindfulness and Embodiment Practices, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): To help regulate the nervous system, reconnect with the body, and cultivate resilience.
As a qualified yoga teacher with additional training in trauma-sensitive yoga, I integrate body-based practices into psychological work when helpful — supporting clients to process trauma not just cognitively, but physiologically.
Whether I’m supporting a teenager and their parents to navigate anxiety, or walking alongside an adult processing trauma, my approach is collaborative, tailored, and deeply compassionate. It’s about creating a space where change feels not only possible - but inevitable.
Credentials & Experience
Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy) – Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London.
20+ years’ experience working in mental health across NHS, education, community, and private settings
HCPC-registered Clinical Psychologist
Qualified EMDR Practitioner
Advanced training in Compassion-Focused Therapy, CBT, trauma-focused approaches, and trauma-informed yoga
Leadership team member for OpCourage (NHS veteran trauma services, Berkshire) — where I also supervise clinicians and design clinical programmes
Speaker at national and international conferences on trauma, anxiety, and adolescent mental health
Specialist expertise in adolescent anxiety, trauma, and attachment
Experience collaborating with parents, schools, charities, and community organisations to reduce youth mental health difficulties at a systemic level
Beyond the Therapy Room
Outside of work, I am a parent, a yoga practitioner and someone who has spent years exploring the relationship between the mind, the body and consciousness through retreats, meditation and study. That personal enquiry is not separate from my clinical work. It shapes the depth and humanity I bring to it.
I believe that understanding ourselves is one of the most courageous things we can do. And I believe it is always possible, regardless of how long something has been there.
A Final Word
Many people arrive here in the in-between. They may be thinking about getting help, wanting a bit more information or wanting to be proactive whilst on a waiting list for therapy.
Dr Anouk Online was built for exactly that space. Wherever you are in your journey, there is something here for you. No pressure. No judgement. Just a place to begin.
Work With Me Directly
If you would like to work with me on a one-to-one basis, my private practice is at the Newtown Clinic in Marlow, Buckinghamshire.
I offer individual therapy for teenagers and adults across anxiety, trauma, PTSD and Complex PTSD. Sessions are tailored to you and draw on whichever evidence-based approaches are most relevant to what you are working through.
I am a recognised insurance provider and see clients on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The clinic also offers osteopathy and, from 2027, functional medicine and nutrition, with both physical and psychological care under one roof.
If you are based further afield, online sessions are also available. Enquire at thenewtownclinic.co.uk.
Office: Buckinghamshire UK
Site: www.dranouk.online