Dr Femke Okten
Dr Femke Okten (née Leathes) was Head Girl in 1994 and an academic Sixth Form scholar. Today she manages her own Clinical Psychology practice with a healthy 40 plus therapists.
Before joining Luckley in 1987, Femke was schooled in the US for three years and prior to that at an international school in Belgium. Luckley was the first time she wore a school uniform and a first for not calling teachers by their first name! Yet, she settled into Luckley life well and went on to flourish academically and make lifelong friends. She recalls the small tight-knit community, the summer fairs, the bluebells, trips, as well as her Geography teachers, Miss Caldwell and Mr Blake (in his academic gown). The girls were taught how to sit and walk like ladies, she reflects with a smile.
After Luckley came university. Femke studied Law for a term before deciding it was not for her, much to her parents’ amazement. Instead, she found herself working in a Wokingham café – with fond memories of her barista life. Returning to university the following year, she followed her interests, which resulted in a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) degree in Geography. Despite her First Class result Femke was none the wiser of the direction she would take and followed the path of many, with graduate job interviews. It was an ad in The Times with healthcare company, Johnson & Johnson that caught her eye, which is where she ended up. This was a sales and marketing role, which had little to do with the outdoor landscapes she had loved throughout her degree. Nevertheless, she had bought into this successful business because of its core values of human responsibility and dignity. The company culture resonated with her own values and this made her happy for a time.
Then one day, over a conversation with friends, they mused over Femke’s future. As young accountants, doctors and executives climbing the ladder, it was mildly amusing that their good friend should have an uncertain career path. What emerged was Femke’s individual values; the intangible principles that inspire and are most important in one’s life. What had really enthused Femke most was her undergraduate Geography dissertation, reporting on the demographic distribution of mental health; with the majority of Femke’s research found in psychology journals. This revelation, with encouragement from a family friend in clinical psychology, lead her back to university.
After completing a Psychology Diploma (with Distinction) at Oxford Brookes University, Femke worked in a home for adults with severe learning difficulties in Suffolk – gaining important hands-on experience. One year on, she was accepted into Oxford University, where she accomplished a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. While at Oxford, Femke recalls a particular ‘Sliding Doors’ moment. Cycling up a big hill, she spotted a car similar to the company car she had once driven while at her previous Johnson & Johnson role. As it drove by with ease, she felt content with her choices and the struggle up that hill was invigorating. Graduating from Oxford around her 30th birthday, no longer did she compare herself with the successes of her friends. Instead, she went on to work as a Psychologist for the NHS – helping others overcome difficulties with kindness and compassion. She had found her true vocation.
Femke’s work in the NHS later lead her to set up her own private practice, Leathes Psychology. She now works with two close Luckley friends; an accountant who handles the company’s reports and taxes and the other, a reconstructive plastic surgeon whose patients are treated by Leathes Psychology. The practice has gone from strength to strength and today there are a team of 44 practitioners. Maintaining close links with the doctoral training course at Oxford University, she also provides regular teaching there too. Femke learned that to become truly accomplished you must do the things that matter most to you and set about doing them well. Listening to Femke discuss her career on Speech Day, it was hard to take my eyes off her.
If you are interested in learning more about Leathes Psychology visit: www.leathespsychology.co.uk. To listen to Femke on Luckley’s Speech Day visit: Speech Day July 2022 and skip to 1:10 on the time counter.