What I Offer
I offer Individual Psychotherapy both short term and long term. Therapy can be offered face to face at my office in Fulham or virtually through on-line sessions.
Therapy sessions provide a confidential, non-judgemental space to be curious, explore and develop a new understanding of the emotional and psychological impact of past experiences. With this understanding also comes opportunities to move forward in ways that may not have felt possible before.
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)
Dealing with Traumatic Experiences
For some people, when something traumatic has happened to them, the memory of their experience comes crashing back into their mind, forcing them to relive the event with the same intensity of feeling - as if it is re-occuring in the present. These experiences may present as flashbacks or nightmares and are thought to occur because the mind was simply too overwhelmed during the event to process what happened at the time.
As a result, these unprocessed memories and the accompanying sights, sounds, thoughts and feelings are stored in the brain in 'raw' form. Here, they can be accessed when something in everyday life triggers a recollection of the original event. EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing' and is a type of therapy designed to help stop difficult memories from causing distress.
While it is not possible to erase these memories, the process of eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) alters the way these traumatic memories are stored within the brain, making them less distressing and easier to manage.
EMDR may be used for a range of psychological distress and is one of the two NICE recommended treatments for PTSD.
In the UK, EMDR is regulated by the EMDR UK and Ireland Association, which is affiliated to EMDR Europe.
Parent/Carer Consultations
Clinical evidence supports working directly with parents/carers to address common childhood emotional/behavioural difficulties. For many parents/carers this makes a lot of sense as they know their children the best and also spend the most time with them.
By supporting parents to understand their child’s needs, developmentally and psychologically, research has found that it can improve parental confidence and it can also decrease emotional/behavioural difficulties.
Another important aspect of parent consultation is helping parents understand and address their own anxiety, concerns or beliefs about their child or adolescent’s behaviour. Addressing parents’ own feelings, judgements, and personal coping styles can be an effective way of helping parents manage their own stress and model healthy emotional responses at home.
"When a flower doesn't bloom you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower" - Alexander Den Heijer.
Parent/Carer Consultations include meeting with the parents/carers to develop a clear and holistic understanding of the concerns, the strengths of the child and family and the areas of difficulty. Subsequent sessions will focus on addressing the specific issues which are creating difficulties and learning skills and strategies to manage the difficulties.
Common child difficulties that have a strong evidence base for using parenting consultation include:
- Mild to Moderate Challenging or Difficult Behaviour
- Mild to Moderate Anxiety
- Child/Adolescent Sleep Problems
- Grief and Loss