
Sonja was born and raised in Germany. She received her physiotherapy diploma in 1992 from the Dr. Rohrbach School in Germany. She completed the Bachelor of Health Sciences (Physiotherapy) degree in 1999 after her immigration to Canada. She has practiced orthopedic physiotherapy for over 20 years. Her postgraduate education is ongoing.
She has been a registered Vodder Therapist since 2005 with extensive training in Manual Lymphatic Drainage and lymph-edema therapy. She has contributed to the Education Working Group of the Canadian Lymph-edema Framework since 2013. Sonja also has completed a post-graduate certification program in pain management through the University of Alberta in 2013. She is a certified Progressive Goal Attainment Programme (PGAP) clinician and a member of the Oncology and Pain Science divisions of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association.
Sonja opened her own physiotherapy practice, Healing Rivers Physiotherapy, in 2006. Her special interest is in the treatment of patients with chronic pain conditions (such as fibromyalgia, complex regional pain syndrome, etc.), cancer, and lymph-edema.