Why did I train to be a counsellor?
Following many years in paid and voluntary roles helping people to feel better about themselves, and more connected with their community and the natural world, I trained to be a counsellor. During my own experience of counselling I learnt how to live my life meaningfully and with compassion for myself and others. I hope to offer the same opportunity to others.
How do I work?
Building a safe and genuine therapeutic relationship between myself and my clients is at the heart my approach. This in itself can be enough for many people to have the confidence to make positive changes to their lives, but it isn’t always enough. So in addition we can collaborate on a way of working that may suit your needs; for example you may want to focus on a particular goal, build on exisiting coping strategies or develop new ones.
What experience and training do I have?
Over the last few years I’ve worked with a wide range of clients experiencing anxiety, low self esteem, depression and low mood, lack of confidence, difficulties in relationships and life transitions.
Some of my clients choose me because of specific skills and experience. I’m a counsellor and a manager at a charity offering counselling to adults who’ve experienced sexual abuse. I’ve volunteered as a bereavement supporter at Cruse and I’m trained by The Foundation for Infant Loss and SANDS to support people who’ve experienced a termination, a baby death during pregnancy or after birth, or involuntary childlessness.
I’ve been educating, empowering and counselling adults during pregnancy, birth and early parenthood for over 12 years in non clinical roles.
Read about my wider professional development and training here.
Trauma informed counselling
I’m a trauma informed counsellor with an interest in how the mind and body remember trauma. If you’ve experienced trauma, and wish to work on this in counselling, we’ll take a phased approach to the work (a way of working developed by Judith Herman). This could start with an exploration of how trauma’s impacting your life now, and how you’re coping - maybe what you’ve already achieved is enough? There’s never an expectation that you’ll talk about what happened to you, but if you feel safe enough, this may be something that you want to do.
Allyship and education
I am invested in being an ally to marginalised communities and am passionate about educating myself. My intention is to be anti-racist and anti-disriminatory, and you can see this reflected in my training and on my Facebook page. I’ll offer reasonable adjustments to all clients.
Other important information about counselling
Confidentiality is essential to the therapeutic relationship and I ensure this through General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliant processing of your information.
I am accredited by the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society, and work to their strict ethical standards and policies.
Perinatal
I’ve had over a decade of experience working with adults (men, women, LGBT+ and solo parents) as they navigate pregnancy, birth and early parenthood. I know a lot about the challenges of getting pregnant, giving birth, feeding babies, adapting to new roles, grieving past lives, and struggling with the reality of providing 24/7 care. I have been trained by SANDS to counsel parents (including dad’s & non-birthing mums), and family members, who have experienced the devastation of a baby dying during pregnancy or after birth. I’ve worked for NCT (the UK’s largest parenting charity) as an antenatal teacher, breastfeeding counsellor, trainer, supervisor, baby massage teacher and crisis supporter. I’ve worked for the NHS as an antenatal teacher and peer supporter, and worked in family centres run by local authorities. I am also a volunteer doula for vulnerable families.
Have a read of my Counselling Directory article on birth trauma.
Grief and bereavement
As a bereavement volunteer at Cruse. I experienced how each person’s grief journey is complex, unique and lifelong. Using grief theory, and a strengths-based approach, I offered clients the opportunity to explore how life can be lived whilst grieving.
Sexual abuse
I offer counselling to survivors of sexual abuse at a local charity. Clients may have lived for many years in silence and counselling offers an opportunity to be heard and to experience a safe relationship. Some clients want to talk about the abuse itself, others will focus on how it has affected their lives, and how they want to move on from the physical and emotional hurt they have experienced. I am influenced by the work of Janina Fisher, Babette Rothschild, Carolyn Spring and Bessel Van der Kolk when working with trauma. I draw widely from the trauma informed research to ensure the work is sensitive, paced and reparative. A very popular pyschoeducation tool that I often use early in trauma work is the window of tolerance.
