Amy Preston

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MA PgDip MBACP
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

London W1G & W3
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

About me

Hi, I’m Amy.

Dog lover, perfectionist in recovery, and BACP registered therapist. I work with women, often in their twenties and thirties, who never feel good enough. I respect women who struggle, and who survive.

Wanting to change is normal, sometimes it helps us grow. Not feeling enough as you are is different. It’s painful. It's linked to depression, difficult relationships and shame. It's possible to be intelligent or high achieving and still not feel good enough. It might look something like this:

Constantly apologising, negatively comparing yourself to other women, having a highly critical voice in your head. Procrastinating. Needing to do things perfectly or there’s no point. Believing you’ll be happy if you can just lose weight/be a better mother/find ‘the one’. Not being able to ask for what you need at work, in your personal life or during sex. Always seeming to end up with partners who lose interest, affect your self confidence or become abusive. Struggling to control your emotions, being labelled ‘too sensitive’. Agreeing to things you dont want to do in order to please others, feeling angry about it. Binge eating or drinking. Having a difficult relationship with your mother. Believing there must be something wrong with you, that you’re ‘damaged goods’ or that everyone will leave you. Feeling ashamed of things that happened to you, keeping them secret. Feeling sad a lot of the time. Giving up.

It sounds hopeless, but it’s not.

I provide specialist counselling and psychotherapy sessions to women who want to change the way they feel about themselves. Therapy with me can help you to accept yourself without losing weight or becoming the perfect partner. Learn how things that happened in your past may have shaped your behaviour in the present, helping you to arrest patterns that are hurting you. It can help you to become assertive in asking for what you want and set boundaries in order to prevent others from treating you with disrespect. It can help you establish healthy, enduring relationships.

Therapy can help you to stop feeling ashamed of who are you and start living a life you actually want, on your own terms.

Therapy with me isn’t cold, clinical or judgemental. I’m warm, approachable and unshockable. I’m not afraid of strong emotions. I won’t tell you what to do, or that there’s only one way of doing it. You can expect a psychobabble free experience. Mental health involves lots of confusing terms and this can feel overwhelming. CBT, DBT, psychodynamic, person-centred are all ways of describing therapy. If you're a women who doesn't feel good enough, concepts like attachment, CPTSD or developmental trauma might feel relevant. It’s my job to understand the psychological theory and make it accessible to you. You just need to show up and be supported.

I am what’s often called an integrative therapist. This means that I’m trained in a number of different forms of psychotherapy and use a combination of these in sessions. The idea behind integrative therapy is that you are unique, and what would work perfectly for you might not work for someone else. I’m able to design a treatment plan tailored specifically to your needs. My practice is trauma informed; founded on the understanding that 1 in 3 women have experienced some form of sexual assault, promoting a culture of safety, empowerment and healing.

I offer sessions in person and online. Reflecting the increasing evidence behind movement based therapy in processing trauma, I also offer 'walk and talk' sessions in Acton park.

Got more questions? Send me a message.

Training, qualifications & experience

I have a deep personal commitment to the emotional heath of women.

I studied social sciences at Trinity College Dublin. This gave me a sound foundation in theories of human motivation, behaviour, sexuality, and gender.

I completed my postgraduate education in counselling and psychotherapy in Cape Town and London, at the South African College of Applied Psychology. As part of my postgraduate research, I investigated the properties of shame and how this affects the way we view ourselves. I use this experience to help women recover from difficult life experiences.

Prior to entering private practice I was part of a multidisciplinary team of psychologists, psychiatrists and counsellors at a mental health service in a deprived part of Cape Town. My clients were often women who had experienced sexual assault or domestic abuse,  frequently in a context of CPTSD or developmental trauma. This manifested in chronic low self-worth, binge eating, alcohol & substance misuse, self-harm or difficulty regulating emotions. I developed this specialism in setting my own therapy practice, treating women who struggle to accept themselves and display repetitive patterns of dysfunctional behaviour.

I continue to work with Frontline19; providing psychological support to NHS staff suffering from covid related trauma and PTSD.

I have a specialist research interest in the treatment of premenstrual dysphoric disorder and the infuence of sex hormones on depression and anxiety in women. I work closely with a gynecologist and psychiatrist in finding the best outcomes for clients.

I’m a registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. This requires me to meet rigorous standards of training, ethics and professional development on an annual basis. Keeping you as a client safe and protected.

Ready to make a change? Book an assessment session today. This is a chance for us to understand whether the therapy I offer may be helpful to you. It also allows you to get a sense of how therapy feels for you, and whether you'd like to work together regularly. 

Member organisations

BACP
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP)

BACP is one of the UK’s leading professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy with around 60,000 members. The Association has several different categories of membership, including Student Member, Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP, Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Accred) and Senior Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Snr Acccred).

Registered and accredited members are listed on the BACP Register, which shows that they have demonstrated BACP’s recommended standards for training, proficiency and ethical practice. The BACP Register was the first register of psychological therapists to be accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).

Accredited and senior accredited membership are voluntary categories for members who choose to undertake a rigorous application and assessment process to demonstrate additional standards around practice, training and supervision.

Individual members will have completed an appropriate counselling or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but they won’t appear on the BACP Register until they've demonstrated that they meet the standards for registration. Student members are still in the process of completing their training.

All members are bound by the BACP Ethical Framework and a Professional Conduct Procedure.

Accredited register membership

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

The Accredited Register Scheme was set up in 2013 by the Department of Health (DoH) as a way to recognise organisations that hold voluntary registers which meet certain standards. These standards are set by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).

This therapist has indicated that they belong to an Accredited Register.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy

Fees

£125.00 per session

Additional information

My fee for an assessment session is £125. My fee for subsequent sessions is £125.

When I work

I'm currently at capacity for in-person sessions, but still have some availability for online appointments. 

Further information

My new website/online booking system for 2023 is currently under construction, drop me a message with any questions.

10 Harley Street, London, W1G 9PF

85-87 Churchfield Road, London, W3 6AH

Type of session

In person
Online

Types of client

Young people
Adults

Key details

DBS check

In England and Wales, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS, formerly known as CRB) carry out criminal records checks for individuals working with vulnerable groups, such as children. To find out more, visit gov.uk , or contact this professional directly

Wheelchair user access
Wheelchair user access

Wheelchair-accessible premises should have step-free access for wheelchair users and individuals who are unable to climb stairs. If a Counsellor's premises aren't step-free, they may offer alternative services such as telephone/web-based appointments, home visits, or meeting clients in different location, so you can choose the option that suits you best.

You can contact the Counsellor to discuss the options available.

Under the Equality Act 2010 service providers have a duty to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that individuals with disabilities can access their service. You can read more about reasonable adjustments to help you to access services on the CAB website.

Online platforms

Whatsapp
Zoom
Amy Preston
Amy Preston