About Dr. Reena Sommer

Dr. Reena Sommer received her doctoral degree in psychology, family studies and sociology from the University of Manitoba in 1994. In 1992, she became internationally known for her work in domestic abuse. At that time, Dr. Sommer spoke out against "Zero Tolerance" policies of domestic abuse; policies that are now being reviewed for the flaws that she had identified.

Since that time, Dr. Sommer has written extensively on issues relating to violence — in the family, addictions & codependency. As her career progressed, Dr. Sommer's interest in high conflict relationships led her toward developing expertise as a divorce consultant. Dr. Sommer subsequently received training in the assessment and treatment of parental alienation syndrome under Dr. Richard Gardner. She has been an invited speaker to academic, government and lay audiences in Canada and the U.S. In May, 1998, Dr. Sommer was invited to testify before the Joint Senate-House of Commons Committee on custody and access. In April 2002, she was invited once again by the Canadian government to participate in a panel of experts from Canada and the United States to revisit the findings of the Joint Senate-House of Commons Committee.

After completing post doctoral studies in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba, Dr. Sommer decided to leave academia to pursue her interests in clinical and consulting work. She began working as a consultant to Medical Services Branch providing services to First Nations people on and off reserves and did so for three years. Since 1996, Dr. Sommer's consulting practice has grown. Before moving to Texas, she was a consultant to Employee Assistance Services (Health Canada), Correctional Services of Canada, Child and Family Services agencies throughout Manitoba and Ontario. Dr. Sommer provides consultations on divorce, custody and access to lawyers and clients locally as well as throughout the U.S., Canada and abroad.

A major thrust of Dr. Sommer's work is in the area of separation and divorce and assisting divorcing couples explore options in restructuring their lives. In the past, Dr. Sommer conducted court ordered custody evaluations and oversaw courted ordered supervised access. From time to time, Dr. Sommer is asked to provide expert testimony.

Dr. Sommer is guided by the belief that children should not be denied a relationship with their parents simply because their moms and dads decide to divorce. She views her role as a family life consultant to help men and women develop effective parenting plans that make it possible for them to maintain a positive connection with their children.

Dr. Sommer remains active in the community by speaking publically to service groups and serving on committees such as the program planning committee for Jewish Child and Family Service. She is often called upon by the media to comment on a variety of family and relationship related topics. For fun, Dr. Sommer enjoys her nonacademic writing as a contributor to Winnipeg Parents Newsmagazine and Winnipeg Women which began publishing in April, 2000. Dr. Sommer is married to Dr. Michael Thomas who is also one of her associates, and has three children, Debra, Daniel and Leah.