About Me and My Experience

I’m a warm, friendly EMDR Accredited Practitioner and BACP Accredited Psychotherapist. I have 30 years of clinical experience providing therapy. I specialise in Trauma, Complex PTSD,  depression, anxiety, bereavement, building self esteem, and relationship issues. I practice in central Kingston upon Thames.

I began my therapy journey over 30 years ago, when I experienced a particularly traumatic bereavement and consulted a psychotherapist. Having experienced firsthand the far reaching benefits of good therapy, I then decided to change my career from being a marketing manager for a large corporation, to training to be a therapist. Since then I have continued to be very lucky in being able to have a career in something which I am passionate about.

I have worked in a variety of settings over the years including the NHS, drug and alcohol services, the voluntary sector and in private practice. I am a recognised counselling provider for several private Health Insurance Providers and Employee Assistance Programmes including Bupa, Aviva, Capita, Health Assured and CBT Clinics.

I was the Clinical Lead at Kingston Bereavement service for 7 years where I was responsible for the recruitment, training and support of 24 bereavement counsellors.

I help with:

• Loneliness and isolation
• Self esteem issues
• Relationship difficulties
• Personality Disorders
• Childhood abuse
• Domestic violence
• Sex, sexuality and intimacy
• Stress
• Mid Life concerns
• Work related difficulties

Personal Approach

My original training in counselling was ‘Person Centred’. This kind of counselling places great emphasis on providing a safe, empathic, non-judgemental space for clients to discuss whatever is troubling them. Since becoming an Accredited EMDR practitioner, I have come to specialise in Trauma and Complex PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). This approach is clinically proven to heal all kinds of traumatic experiences. More recently, I have begun to incorporate Internal Family Systems (IFS) theory into my practice as it helps to identify different parts of ourselves that can sometimes be in conflict.

In addition I also offer a Cognitive Behavioural Approach using practical techniques drawn from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. CBT helps you identify and change unhelpful thoughts, patterns and behaviours.

I am a Senior Accredited  Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and adhere to their Ethical Framework. I hold professional liability insurance for my work. I am ICO registered and GDPR compliant.

You may wish to consider the words of the British Asssociation for Counselling and Psychotherapy

“Accreditation is a quality status for experienced practitioners who can demonstrate high standards of competent and ethical practice.”

My fee is £90 per  50 minute session for individuals face to face, telephone or Zoom.

Please feel free to phone or email me with any questions you may have.  I can offer a 10 minute telephone call to see how we might work together.

All of the approaches I incorporate in my therapy practice are evidenced based and are endorsed by the NHS NICE guidelines for clinical excellence.

I offer face-to-face counselling at Kingston Natural Health Centre.