Claire Stephensen
Claire Stephensen
Integrative Somatic Trauma and Creative Arts Therapist
RMT, MIACN, FECC, MMusThy
Claire Stephensen (she/her) is a Somatic Creative Arts Therapist with post graduate training in music therapy, neuropsychotherapy, and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy and Embodiment Coaching.
For over 15 years, she's worked at the intersections of trauma, chronic pain, chronic illness, mental health, and neurodivergence – in psychiatric hospitals, community organisations, and now private practice at Vera Wellness.
But it is her own human experience and interactions that truly shape her work. Those experiences and conversations taught her what neuroscience alone couldn't: skills mean nothing when your nervous system won't let you move.
Now Claire weaves science with soul-deep wisdom, and creativity with cultural critique – because healing isn't just about individual transformation. It's about reimagining care in a culture that's made it feel impossible. Her work helps people move from freeze to flow, survival to embodied aliveness. Through somatic and creative practices, she guides clients to learn their body's language, rebuild developmental care skills they missed, and discover that care isn't something to master – it's who they've always been.
Claire brings deep compassion while fiercely believing in what's possible when people finally have space to unfold. She works with women and non-binary folk who are done performing, ready to feel, and hungry for care that meets them exactly where they are.
Qualifications:
Masters of Music Therapy (University of Queensland)
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Level 1 - Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute
Certificate in Clinical Neuropsychotherapy
Certificate in Neurologic Music Therapy
Certificate in Feminine Embodiment Coaching
Circle of Security
Bringing Up Great Kids
Ongoing training, development and supervision in trauma modalities, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy & Creative Arts Therapies.
Claire supports women and non-binary folk with:
Chronic stress, burnout, & dysregulation
Trauma and complex trauma
Anxiety, depression, and emotional overwhelm
Disconnection from body, self, or sense of identity
Navigating neurodivergence and sensory sensitivity
Life transitions – perinatal, postpartum, & motherhood
Grief, loss, and anticipatory grief
Fatigue, pain, & the emotional weight of chronic illness
Self and plan managed NDIS participants
Claire’s offering:
Sense & Soma – a monthly embodied movement group
Seasonal free online workshops – open to all
"Drop the Anchor" – a 10-day self-paced program offering a grounded framework for meeting intensity, discomfort, and pain. Real-life, neuro-affirming, and trauma-informed – built for navigating complex times in complex bodies.
"CareWeaver" – a 3-month online somatic education program for women and non-binary folk ready to transform their relationship with care, safety, and aliveness – even if you've tried all of the strategies, read all the books and it still hasn't stuck.
Approach
She's one part neuroscience nerd, one part creative wildling, one part cultural truth-teller – fueled by insatiable curiosity about what it means to be human and the courage to traverse the liminal terrain of grief, rage, and shame.
Claire lives and works on Yuggera and Turrbal land in Brisbane, Australia, as a mother to three young children who keep her honest, humble, and grounded in the real work of building care.
