About Abigail Yang
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Counsellor & Psychotherapist in Singapore
"Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose." – Viktor Frankl
Abigail Yang | Trauma, Grief, EMDR & Relationship Therapy
I am a registered counsellor and psychotherapist in Singapore, working with adults and couples who may be struggling with trauma, grief and loss, difficult life transitions, relationship distress, emotional overwhelm, or experiences from the past that continue to affect how they feel and relate to others today.
People come to therapy for many different reasons. Sometimes something has happened that has changed life completely. Sometimes there is no single event — only the growing realisation that you are exhausted, stuck, disconnected from yourself or repeating patterns that you understand intellectually but still cannot seem to change.
My approach to therapy is warm, collaborative and compassionate, but also honest and practical. I believe being heard is important, but therapy can also help you understand what is happening beneath your emotions, reactions and relationship patterns. My role is not to tell you how you should feel or to push you towards a particular outcome. Instead, we work together to make sense of your experience, identify what may be keeping you stuck, and find a way forward that feels meaningful and realistic for you.
Trauma and EMDR Therapy
Trauma does not always come from one dramatic event. It can also develop through repeated experiences of loss, rejection, emotional hurt, unsafe relationships or situations in which you had little control over what was happening.
When appropriate, I integrate Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) with trauma-informed, attachment-based and other therapeutic approaches. EMDR can be particularly useful when painful memories or experiences continue to trigger strong emotional or physical reactions even when you logically know that the event is already in the past.
Therapy is never one-size-fits-all. I do not believe in applying a technique simply because it is available. We first understand what you are experiencing and what you need before deciding together how therapy should proceed.
Grief, Bereavement and Loss
Grief is another significant area of my clinical work.
As a Certified Thanatologist and Certified Grief Therapist, I work with people experiencing bereavement, traumatic loss, complicated or prolonged grief, anticipatory grief and other forms of significant life loss.
I do not see grief as something that needs to be quickly resolved or something you simply have to “move on” from. Loss can change the way you understand yourself, your relationships and the future you thought you would have.
Our work may involve understanding the emotions surrounding your loss, processing difficult or traumatic aspects of what happened, addressing guilt or unfinished conversations, and gradually reconstructing meaning as you learn how to carry your loss while continuing to live your life.
Relationships and Attachment
I also work with individuals and couples experiencing relationship difficulties, including emotional disconnection, recurring conflict, betrayal, attachment insecurity and difficulties communicating needs and emotions.
Using attachment-based and Emotionally Focused Therapy perspectives, we look beyond the argument itself to understand the emotional patterns underneath it — what each person is protecting, fearing, longing for or finding difficult to express.
Understanding these patterns can create space for different choices and healthier ways of relating, whether the work involves rebuilding a relationship or gaining clarity about what you need moving forward.
What It Is Like to Work With Me
I value psychological safety, but I also value clarity.
You do not have to come into therapy knowing exactly what is wrong or knowing how to explain everything perfectly. We can work that out together.
At the same time, I do not believe therapy should leave you permanently circling around the same issue without understanding it. Where appropriate, I will help you notice patterns, explore perspectives you may not have considered, connect experiences from the past with what is happening in the present, and develop practical ways of responding differently.
My clinical experience spans family services, community mental health, eldercare, palliative care and private practice. Before entering the helping profession, I also worked in business and marketing. These different experiences have given me an appreciation of the many roles people carry in everyday life — particularly individuals who may appear capable and functional externally while privately struggling with emotional distress, relationships, loss or burnout.
I hold a Master of Counselling from Monash University and am a Registered Counsellor with the Singapore Association for Counselling. I am also a Certified Thanatologist, Certified Grief Therapist and trained Clinical Supervisor. My full professional qualifications and therapeutic training are listed below. Bilingual Counselling in English & Mandarin
I provide counselling and psychotherapy in English and Mandarin, allowing clients to express themselves in the language they feel most comfortable using, particularly when discussing emotionally complex or deeply personal experiences. Sessions can be conducted in person or online.
If you feel my approach may be suitable for you, you are welcome to contact me to enquire about an appointment.
People come to therapy for many different reasons. Sometimes something has happened that has changed life completely. Sometimes there is no single event — only the growing realisation that you are exhausted, stuck, disconnected from yourself or repeating patterns that you understand intellectually but still cannot seem to change.
My approach to therapy is warm, collaborative and compassionate, but also honest and practical. I believe being heard is important, but therapy can also help you understand what is happening beneath your emotions, reactions and relationship patterns. My role is not to tell you how you should feel or to push you towards a particular outcome. Instead, we work together to make sense of your experience, identify what may be keeping you stuck, and find a way forward that feels meaningful and realistic for you.
Trauma and EMDR Therapy
Trauma does not always come from one dramatic event. It can also develop through repeated experiences of loss, rejection, emotional hurt, unsafe relationships or situations in which you had little control over what was happening.
When appropriate, I integrate Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) with trauma-informed, attachment-based and other therapeutic approaches. EMDR can be particularly useful when painful memories or experiences continue to trigger strong emotional or physical reactions even when you logically know that the event is already in the past.
Therapy is never one-size-fits-all. I do not believe in applying a technique simply because it is available. We first understand what you are experiencing and what you need before deciding together how therapy should proceed.
Grief, Bereavement and Loss
Grief is another significant area of my clinical work.
As a Certified Thanatologist and Certified Grief Therapist, I work with people experiencing bereavement, traumatic loss, complicated or prolonged grief, anticipatory grief and other forms of significant life loss.
I do not see grief as something that needs to be quickly resolved or something you simply have to “move on” from. Loss can change the way you understand yourself, your relationships and the future you thought you would have.
Our work may involve understanding the emotions surrounding your loss, processing difficult or traumatic aspects of what happened, addressing guilt or unfinished conversations, and gradually reconstructing meaning as you learn how to carry your loss while continuing to live your life.
Relationships and Attachment
I also work with individuals and couples experiencing relationship difficulties, including emotional disconnection, recurring conflict, betrayal, attachment insecurity and difficulties communicating needs and emotions.
Using attachment-based and Emotionally Focused Therapy perspectives, we look beyond the argument itself to understand the emotional patterns underneath it — what each person is protecting, fearing, longing for or finding difficult to express.
Understanding these patterns can create space for different choices and healthier ways of relating, whether the work involves rebuilding a relationship or gaining clarity about what you need moving forward.
What It Is Like to Work With Me
I value psychological safety, but I also value clarity.
You do not have to come into therapy knowing exactly what is wrong or knowing how to explain everything perfectly. We can work that out together.
At the same time, I do not believe therapy should leave you permanently circling around the same issue without understanding it. Where appropriate, I will help you notice patterns, explore perspectives you may not have considered, connect experiences from the past with what is happening in the present, and develop practical ways of responding differently.
My clinical experience spans family services, community mental health, eldercare, palliative care and private practice. Before entering the helping profession, I also worked in business and marketing. These different experiences have given me an appreciation of the many roles people carry in everyday life — particularly individuals who may appear capable and functional externally while privately struggling with emotional distress, relationships, loss or burnout.
I hold a Master of Counselling from Monash University and am a Registered Counsellor with the Singapore Association for Counselling. I am also a Certified Thanatologist, Certified Grief Therapist and trained Clinical Supervisor. My full professional qualifications and therapeutic training are listed below. Bilingual Counselling in English & Mandarin
I provide counselling and psychotherapy in English and Mandarin, allowing clients to express themselves in the language they feel most comfortable using, particularly when discussing emotionally complex or deeply personal experiences. Sessions can be conducted in person or online.
If you feel my approach may be suitable for you, you are welcome to contact me to enquire about an appointment.
Credentials
- Registered Counsellor with Singapore Association for Counselling (SAC)
- Full Member with William Glasser Institute (Singapore) (WGIS)
- Certified Thanatologist with the Association for Death Education and Counselling (ADEC)
- Certified Grief Therapist with Portland Institute for Loss and Transition
- Registered Professional Clinical Counsellor with the Association for Christian Counsellors Singapore (ACCS)
- Professional member of the International Association for Counselling (IAC)
- Full member with EMDR Singapore
- Member with Hong Kong Professional Counselling Association
- Allied Member with Psychotherapy Society of Hong Kong
- Full member with the Singapore Emotionally Focused Therapy Community (SGEFT)
- Member of International Centre For Excellence In Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT)
- Graduate Certificate in Clinical Supervision with Flinders University, Australia
- Master of Counselling with Monash University, Australia
- Post-Graduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology with College of Allied Educators, Singapore
- Bachelor of Business Studies (Marketing), University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin
- Certificate in Grief Therapy as Meaning Reconstruction with Portland Institute for Loss and Transition
Therapeutic Approaches
- Attachment-Focused Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT)
- Choice Theory / Reality Therapy
- Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
- Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Emotionally Focused Therapy (Individual, Couple and Family)
- Narrative Therapy
- Grief Therapy as Meaning Reconstruction (GTMR)
- Expressive Sandplay Therapy and Symbol Works
- Internal Family Systems (IFS)
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