“Who are we but the stories we tell ourselves,
about ourselves, and believe?”
Scott Turow
About me
We live in times of great uncertainty and transition. There have been unimaginable changes to how we live, work and relate to each other. For some these lead to difficulties with daily functioning or affect their relationships.
Whether you are struggling with what is happening in your life right now, or looking to deal with long standing difficulties so you can move forward, or looking to change your life and step forward in a new direction with a new purpose, I'd like to help.
I am an experienced psychotherapist with over a decade of experience working in the NHS and overseas in the humanitarian sector. I find it immensely humbling and rewarding to witness people let go of unhelpful beliefs and behaviours and step into a joyful, meaningful life of their making. I do this by creating a calm and supportive environment where you can explore your difficulties and overcome them.
I offer sessions online practicing creative, powerful and efficient therapies such as EMDR and CBT. In North Yorkshire, I also offer walking therapy, where we talk as we walk in nature. Walking in nature can help some people feel relaxed and make it easier to talk about difficult things.
Please contact me to arrange a free consultation to see if we are good fit.
My approach
The story so far..
The story edit
The story going forward..
We start by working out how you got to be the way you are and how you learnt to cope. We look at your life holistically, examining possible biological, psychological, social and spiritual aspects that contributed to your difficulties and identify key themes.
This includes understanding how you've coped so far and identifying what you need to hold on to and what you can let go.
We also work to help you learn skills to cope with daily challenges and giving you breathing space to work on the next part.
Here we look at helping you change the story that you are telling yourself, by letting go of patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving.
We aim to connect with and release what is holding you back at cognitive, emotional and bodily levels.
We look to heal those elements and help you reconnect with your authentic self.
This is where we begin to plan for the future. You've done the hard work and let go of what no longer serves you.
Now we plan how you can move forward to live the best life you can imagine and create for yourself.
Who do you want to be? What is important to you? What story do you want to tell about yourself, and believe?
My training
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I am an accredited EMDR Therapist and Consultant/ Supervisor.
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EMDR is effective for treating PTSD, complex trauma, and recurring presentations of e.g. anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, disordered eating/sleep or self-harm. These are often based in earlier unresolved traumatic experiences held at a bodily or emotional level, which EMDR unlocks.
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I have additional training in working with attachment focused EMDR. This is helpful to address current difficulties that are rooted in attachment difficulties, trauma experienced during a child's preverbal years or trauma that is inter-generational.
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I am also experienced in using EMDR 'blind', which allows people to address sensitive difficulties and resolve them without having to discuss the related events with the therapist.
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I am also an accredited CBT Therapist.
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CBT is an an evidence based treatment for problems such as anxiety, depression, panic attacks, social anxiety, OCD, self-harm, and disordered eating.
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As part of this, I have additional training and experience in working with the Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Schema Therapy approaches.
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I have a special interest in trauma and dissociation and have had additional training in working with alters/parts.
My experience
I have worked within various NHS services such as eating disorders, Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), primary care, forensic services and a specialist Veterans Complex Treatment Service.
In the humanitarian sector, I have worked in the Middle East and South East Asia, treating, supervising and training individuals to support those affected by conflict and its mental health consequences.
Prior to training as a psychotherapist, I worked with children and adolescents with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.