Sarah Buchanan MA, MBACP

Embodied countertransference as a healing aid in addiction recovery

Sarah Buchanan earned a Masters Degree in Integrative Psychotherapy (MA) and a Degree/Diploma from University of Roehampton in Psychology (BA) Therapeutic Psychology. She holds membership with British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy.

She has over 15 years of experience bringing an extensive working knowledge of 12-step recovery to a clinical practice grounded in contemporary psychodynamic theory, whole-body awareness, and trauma-informed approaches. Her work explores the intersections of psyche, nervous system, and lived experience—particularly through the lens of women’s subjectivity. SJ specialises in embodied countertransference and the role of the therapist’s body as an instrument of atunement, insight and transformation. She works exclusively face-to-face with women in her London-based practice.

She specialises in embodied countertransference, exploring how the therapist’s bodily responses deepen therapeutic understanding. Her approach integrates trauma-sensitive yoga, polyvagal theory and a focus on how emotions manifest in the body, fostering real-time connection and insight in the therapeutic relationship.
With a background in addiction recovery and current work in a local hospice supporting those affected by terminal illness and bereavement, she brings depth and empathy to her practice.