My approach and how it works
About Me
I have practiced as a psychotherapist since qualifying with a Masters in Gestalt Psychotherapy in 2008. I am accredited by the UKCP and abide by their code of ethics. I hold a Diploma in Supervision.
In 2015 I completed my training as an EMDR therapist. EMDR (Eye Movement Desentisisation and Reprocessing) is a type of therapy, approved by NICE, which has been shown to be helpful in treating the symptoms of trauma.
In addition to my practice I am the Head of Programme and an Academic Lecturer on a Humanistic Psychotherapy Masters course at a leading psychotherapy training Institute. I am also working towards a PhD.
For several years I worked with Employee Assistance Providers - providing counselling, telephone support, organisational training and authoring articles on a range of well-being topics. I volunteered with St Joseph's Hospice's bereavement team and in schools with Place2Be.
I have particular interest in issues relating to midlife, creativity, spirituality and existential questions, climate anxiety, working with highly sensitive people and Adult Third Culture Kids (people with internationally mobile upbringings).
Prior to qualifying as a psychotherapist I had a career in marketing and events which gave me a good understanding of the demands of the commercial world.
In 2015 I completed my training as an EMDR therapist. EMDR (Eye Movement Desentisisation and Reprocessing) is a type of therapy, approved by NICE, which has been shown to be helpful in treating the symptoms of trauma.
In addition to my practice I am the Head of Programme and an Academic Lecturer on a Humanistic Psychotherapy Masters course at a leading psychotherapy training Institute. I am also working towards a PhD.
For several years I worked with Employee Assistance Providers - providing counselling, telephone support, organisational training and authoring articles on a range of well-being topics. I volunteered with St Joseph's Hospice's bereavement team and in schools with Place2Be.
I have particular interest in issues relating to midlife, creativity, spirituality and existential questions, climate anxiety, working with highly sensitive people and Adult Third Culture Kids (people with internationally mobile upbringings).
Prior to qualifying as a psychotherapist I had a career in marketing and events which gave me a good understanding of the demands of the commercial world.
My approach
I aim to meet the unique needs of each individual or couple and offer what is most helpful at any given moment, I do not offer a one-size-fits-all approach. Much of my approach is informed by Gestalt Psychotherapy and I also draw on other modalities. This means I might use aspects of CBT, Transactional Analysis, EMDR and Mindfulness among others.
Our work together might include increasing your self awareness, re-evaluating habitual thinking and behaviour, exploring your embodied experience and processing thoughts and feelings. This can help you to find greater fulfillment in life. This is done within the context of a relationship that offers warmth and acceptance as well as appropriate levels of challenge.
Our work together might include increasing your self awareness, re-evaluating habitual thinking and behaviour, exploring your embodied experience and processing thoughts and feelings. This can help you to find greater fulfillment in life. This is done within the context of a relationship that offers warmth and acceptance as well as appropriate levels of challenge.
Gestalt Psychotherapy
Here are some key aspects of Gestalt Psychotherapy:
Here and Now
Gestalt therapy emphasises the importance of our experiences in the Here and Now. This doesn't mean ignoring the past or the future but understanding how they impact us in the present. Gestalt therapy encourages us to notice how we are feeling moment to moment. Increasing awareness of our immediate thoughts, feelings and behaviour and patterns of relating can bring about new perspectives and transformation.
Creative Adjustment
In order to adapt to the circumstances of our lives we creatively adjust in the best way that we can with the resources we have at the time. For instance, a child with an angry parent may creatively adjust by keeping quiet about their needs, or another child with a depressed parent may learn to hide their worries and be strong for their parent. At the time these were probably the best choices they could make but if they continue to ignore their own needs as adults, they are likely to encounter problems in relationships and other areas of life.
In Gestalt therapy we try to identify the ways in which we have learned to creatively adjust and seek to find more authentic and liberating ways of relating in the present.
Holistic
As a holistic psychotherapist I view a person as a whole, so the mind, spirit and the body work together. Sometimes our body tells us things that we can't yet mentally process or are willing to admit to - think of the person who says they are fine through clenched teeth, or another who develops a headache each time they have to meet someone they don't like. By paying attention to our bodies we receive vital information about ourselves and what we need.
Holistic also means that to understand ourselves fully we need to bring our curiousity to the full context of our lives. This includes our personal circumstances, our relationships, our social and cultural influences, how power operates in our lives, our position in society, our relationship with the natural world and our ways of being. Work is grounded in the therapist / client relationship which offers opportunities for authentic and meaningful meeting and healing.
Here and Now
Gestalt therapy emphasises the importance of our experiences in the Here and Now. This doesn't mean ignoring the past or the future but understanding how they impact us in the present. Gestalt therapy encourages us to notice how we are feeling moment to moment. Increasing awareness of our immediate thoughts, feelings and behaviour and patterns of relating can bring about new perspectives and transformation.
Creative Adjustment
In order to adapt to the circumstances of our lives we creatively adjust in the best way that we can with the resources we have at the time. For instance, a child with an angry parent may creatively adjust by keeping quiet about their needs, or another child with a depressed parent may learn to hide their worries and be strong for their parent. At the time these were probably the best choices they could make but if they continue to ignore their own needs as adults, they are likely to encounter problems in relationships and other areas of life.
In Gestalt therapy we try to identify the ways in which we have learned to creatively adjust and seek to find more authentic and liberating ways of relating in the present.
Holistic
As a holistic psychotherapist I view a person as a whole, so the mind, spirit and the body work together. Sometimes our body tells us things that we can't yet mentally process or are willing to admit to - think of the person who says they are fine through clenched teeth, or another who develops a headache each time they have to meet someone they don't like. By paying attention to our bodies we receive vital information about ourselves and what we need.
Holistic also means that to understand ourselves fully we need to bring our curiousity to the full context of our lives. This includes our personal circumstances, our relationships, our social and cultural influences, how power operates in our lives, our position in society, our relationship with the natural world and our ways of being. Work is grounded in the therapist / client relationship which offers opportunities for authentic and meaningful meeting and healing.