Fabiola Pérez

Fabiola Pérez: Body-Centred EMDR and Couples Counselling

Fabiola Pérez is a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor at Thrive Downtown who blends EMDR, somatic parts work and emotion-focused couples therapy to help you listen to the stories your body has been holding. If you have reached a point of exhaustion and your logical brain keeps asking “but why?”, this guide explains how Fabiola works, who she supports, and how to get on her list.

“I See You. I Feel You.”: The Heart of Fabiola Pérez’s Approach

The quote at the top of this page is Fabiola’s own, and it captures something essential about her work. Before tools and techniques, there is the experience of being seen and felt by another person. For many people carrying early wounds, that experience was missing when it mattered most.

Fabiola describes offering a “portal of transformation” and helping you awaken the Inner Healer within. In practical terms, that means a relationship built on cooperation, connection and trust, where skills and insight are shared at a pace you are ready for.

Qualifications and credentials

• Registered Therapeutic Counsellor, RTC #2838 of ACCT
• Diploma in Professional Counselling
• BDes (Honours)
• EMDR trained practitioner, with formal EMDR training
• Emotion Focused Couples trained
• Languages: English and Spanish

EMDR with Fabiola Pérez

EMDR, short for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is built on the idea that distressing experiences can remain stored in the nervous system in raw, unprocessed form. When something in the present echoes them, the old alarm fires as if the past were happening now. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation, such as side-to-side eye movements, alternating taps or sounds, to help the brain link those stuck memories with more adaptive information. The EMDR International Association shares research and background on the method.

How EMDR can feel from the inside

• Early sessions focus on safety and calming resources, not on digging into the hardest memories
• During processing, you notice whatever arises, images, feelings or body sensations, without needing to talk through every detail
• Many people describe memories feeling more distant or less charged afterward
• New, kinder beliefs about yourself can start to feel true in the body, not only in your head

EMDR for early and attachment wounds

Many people carry pain from times they cannot clearly remember, or from a general atmosphere in childhood rather than a single event. EMDR can work with the feelings, beliefs and body sensations connected to those periods, such as “I am alone” or “I am not safe”, even when the memories are hazy. Combined with resource-building and somatic support, this can make EMDR a gentle option for early attachment trauma, one of Fabiola’s specialties.

Because EMDR does not rely on extensive talking, it can be a good fit when your logical mind cannot explain why you feel the way you do. Learn more about EMDR therapy at Thrive.

Somatic Parts Work and the Body’s Inner Stories

Fabiola writes that the body holds inner stories trying to be told, and that when the mind does not know how to process them, they may show up as anxiety, depression or behaviours that affect our connections. Body-centred and integrative somatic parts work give those stories a way to be heard.

Signs your body may be carrying an unfinished story

• Feeling suddenly flooded, frozen or numb without an obvious reason
• Chronic tension, a braced posture or trouble fully relaxing
• Strong reactions in relationships that feel much bigger than the moment
• Exhaustion that rest does not seem to touch
• Knowing something is wrong but being unable to explain it logically

These are not signs that you are broken. They are often the body’s way of asking for attention, and counselling can help translate what it is saying.

What body-centred work can include

• Tracking sensations like tightness, heat or heaviness as clues to what a part of you is feeling
• Gently noticing where in the body a younger part seems to live
• Using breath, posture and grounding to help the nervous system settle
• Letting movements or impulses complete, such as pushing away or reaching out, in a safe and contained way

Re-parenting your inner child

Fabiola sees early childhood experiences as more alive than we think, and describes a wounded inner child as an opportunity to actively re-parent yourself. Re-parenting means offering younger parts of you the attunement, protection and encouragement they needed. Over time, this can support a more cohesive, integrated and grounded sense of self.

Emotion Focused Couples Therapy

Fabiola is trained in Emotion Focused Couples Therapy, an approach developed by Sue Johnson and colleagues and grounded in attachment science. It sees most couple conflict as a protest against disconnection. When partners do not feel safe reaching for each other, they fall into a negative cycle, one pursuing and the other withdrawing, each triggering the other’s fears. The International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy describes the model in depth.

The three stages of the work

1. De-escalation: naming the cycle as the enemy, rather than each other.
2. Restructuring the bond: helping each partner share softer, underlying emotions and needs, and respond to each other with more openness.
3. Consolidation: bringing new patterns into everyday life and old problems, so the relationship feels like a safe haven.

Common cycles couples recognize

• Pursue and withdraw: one partner pushes for connection or answers while the other shuts down to avoid conflict.
• Attack and attack: both partners criticize and defend, and arguments escalate quickly.
• Withdraw and withdraw: both partners retreat, and the relationship grows quiet and distant.

Seeing the cycle clearly is often the first moment of relief for couples, because it shifts the question from “who is to blame?” to “how do we get out of this together?”

This page lists both individual and couples counselling. See Thrive’s couples counselling page for more on how couples work at the centre.

Mindfulness, MBCT and ACT

Alongside trauma and body-based work, Fabiola draws on mindfulness-based and acceptance-based approaches that offer practical tools between sessions.

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy

MBCT, listed on this page, was developed by Zindel Segal, Mark Williams and John Teasdale. It combines mindfulness practice with ideas from cognitive therapy, helping people notice the early pull of low mood or anxious thinking and step out of autopilot. It was originally designed to help people who have experienced repeated depression reduce the risk of it returning.

Try a three-step breathing space

One well-known MBCT practice is a short breathing space in three steps. First, notice what is here right now: thoughts, feelings and sensations. Second, gather your attention on the breath moving in and out. Third, widen your awareness to the whole body and the space around you. It takes about three minutes and can be used whenever you feel yourself sliding into autopilot or overwhelm.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

ACT encourages you to make space for difficult feelings rather than wrestling with them, and to take steps toward what you value even when those feelings are present. For someone exhausted by trying to think their way out of pain, this shift can bring relief.

Emotional regulation skills

Emotional regulation is one of Fabiola’s specialties. Rather than suppressing feelings, regulation means being able to feel them, understand them and return to balance. Skills might include paced breathing, orienting to your surroundings, self-soothing touch and naming emotions as they arise.

Who Fabiola Pérez Supports

Early attachment trauma

Signs of early attachment wounds can include a harsh inner critic, difficulty trusting care when it is offered, fear of being too much or not enough, and a tendency to either cling or keep people at a distance.

When early caregiving was unpredictable, neglectful or frightening, the nervous system may learn that closeness is unsafe or that needs will not be met. These lessons can shape adult relationships, self-worth and emotional life. EMDR, somatic parts work and re-parenting can help update them.

Prenatal and birth trauma

This specialty can include parents processing a difficult or traumatic pregnancy or birth, and adults exploring how circumstances around their own birth and earliest months may have shaped them. Research on the lasting effects of very early stress is still developing, and counselling approaches it with openness and care. New parents may also find support through Pacific Post Partum Support Society.

Depression and anxiety

Fabiola understands depression and anxiety as ways the body and mind signal that something needs attention. Counselling combines body awareness, mindfulness and trauma processing to address what lies underneath.

Many people arrive saying “Can I just get a break?”, echoing the words on this page. Fabiola Pérez takes that exhaustion seriously, starting with ways to feel a little more resourced before going deeper, so relief is not postponed until the end of the work.

Psychedelic integration

Psychedelic integration is a listed specialty. At Thrive, this means preparation and integration support, helping you make sense of an experience and bring its insights into daily life. Thrive does not supply or administer illegal substances. The legal status of psychedelics in Canada is evolving, so follow Canadian law and medical guidance. See Thrive’s psychedelic integration team for more.

If you are in crisis, call or text 988, or call 911 in an emergency.

Counselling in English and Spanish

Fabiola Pérez lists English and Spanish as languages on this page. For many people, emotions and early memories live most vividly in the language they grew up with. Being able to move between languages in session can make it easier to find the right words, or to notice feelings that one language holds differently from another.

This can be especially meaningful for Spanish-speaking or bilingual clients, including people whose families have roots in Latin America or Spain, and for couples who share one language at home and another at work. You can let Fabiola know which language feels right for different parts of the conversation.

Working with Fabiola Pérez at Thrive

A note on the waitlist

As the note on this page explains, Fabiola currently has a waitlist. If you would like to join it, you can email her directly at the address listed in that note. If you would prefer to start sooner, Thrive’s free 15 minute consult can help match you with another counsellor on the team.

How starting at Thrive works

1. Reach out: join Fabiola’s waitlist, or book a free 15 minute consult with Thrive to explore your options.
2. First session: you share what feels heavy, what your body has been telling you, and what you hope for.
3. Collaborative plan: together you choose a direction that may include EMDR, somatic parts work, MBCT, ACT or couples work.
4. Where you meet: Thrive offers sessions in person at 470 Granville St. in downtown Vancouver and online by secure video. Ask which options Fabiola currently offers.

Questions you might bring

• How do you combine EMDR with body-centred parts work?
• Can we work in Spanish, English or both?
• How would couples sessions differ from individual sessions?
• What does preparation look like before trauma processing begins?

The Thrive Formula in Fabiola’s work

• Regulate: grounding and regulation skills so your body feels safe enough to heal.
• Reveal: EMDR and somatic parts work to uncover the stories the body is holding.
• Reclaim: re-parenting and values-based action for a more grounded sense of self.

Fees vary by service, and current rates are shown when booking or on the contact page. Extended health coverage differs by designation, so check whether your plan includes Registered Therapeutic Counsellors. You can also browse the full Thrive team.

Fabiola Pérez FAQ

Does Fabiola Pérez offer counselling in Spanish?

Yes. This page lists English and Spanish as Fabiola’s languages.

Does Fabiola work with couples?

Yes. She is Emotion Focused Couples trained, and this page lists both individual and couples counselling.

Do I need to remember my trauma clearly for EMDR?

No. EMDR can work with fragments, feelings and body sensations, which is helpful for early or preverbal experiences that are hard to put into words.

What is a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor?

RTC is a counselling designation. Fabiola is registered as RTC #2838 with ACCT, as listed on this page.

Can Fabiola help if I do not know what is wrong?

Yes. Many people start exactly there. Body-centred work and EMDR can help you understand what your system is reacting to, even when your logical mind cannot yet explain it.

How do I join the waitlist?

Follow the note on this page to email Fabiola directly. You can also contact Thrive if you would like to start with another counsellor in the meantime.

Can I work on myself before starting couples counselling?

Yes. Some people begin with individual sessions to understand their own patterns and then invite a partner in later. You can discuss the best order with Fabiola.

Is body-based work uncomfortable?

It is always paced gently and by invitation. You can keep your eyes open, pause, or shift focus whenever you need.

Begin Your Healing Path with Fabiola Pérez

Your body’s stories deserve to be heard. You make sense, you are not broken, and connection heals. Join Fabiola Pérez’s waitlist using the note above, or book a free 15 minute consult with Thrive and call 604-227-0297 to explore your options.