Amanda Sandeman
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Knocking on a therapist's door can feel unnerving. It is also the first step in overcoming your fears. I will be there to welcome you with a smile. There is no need to prepare anything.
We all have anxieties, concerns and experiences that can be difficult to talk about. I offer a confidential space and a calm presence in which you can explore any personal issues free of judgment. My aim is that you feel listened to, heard and understood, and find the inner strength to overcome your difficulties.
In an ideal world, each one of us would feel unconditionally loved and accepted, free to be fully and openly ourselves, able to develop and maintain meaningful relationships with others and keen to explore the world around us. We would be trauma free. The reality is that many of us have had challenging experiences in our lives and as a result we carry inner hurts and wounds.
Therapy can help us to implement the changes we wish for
Therapy can help us to search for the roots of our pain and know that there is nothing intrinsically "wrong" with us. Over time, we can put down new, healthy roots that will nourish and re-energise us. Therapy can "unfreeze" parts of ourselves that feel stuck, enabling some flexibility to think, feel or act differently. We can strengthen our sense of who we are and explore and express what we want and what we need from others. We can improve our relationships and the way that we think and feel about ourselves. We can embark on implementing the changes that we wish to make in our lives.
How I work
I work relationally, and the therapeutic relationship that we build is at the heart of our work together. I aim to establish a relationship that feels accepting, non-judgmental and warm: I will meet you with respect and openness. I am a LGBTQIA+ ally. I work with young people and adults who are going through bereavement, family breakdown and divorce or relationship issues. I can offer support if you are struggling with low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence, social anxiety, panic attacks, trauma, suicidal ideation, anger, ADHD, feeling overwhelmed or worthless, self-harm, anxiety and depression. Together, from a place of safety, compassion and understanding, we will work towards the goals that you set.
Training, qualifications & experience
I am an experienced integrative counsellor with a Level 4 Professional Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling from the Mary Ward Centre in London. I completed additional Level 5 training with Teenagers in Crisis (TIC) qualifying me to work as a therapist with children and young people. I am a psychosexual and relationship Therapist in training. I am half-way through a three-year training in Pesso Boyden Therapy, a mind-body approach to emotional well-being that works with memory reconsolidation to effect permanent change. I am an ADHD-clinical services provider (ADHD-CCSP). I am a qualified and experienced secondary school and college teacher (BSc, PGCE).
I was recently employed for two years by a leading mental health charity to set up and coordinate the counselling service in a large sixth-form college, where I also worked as a counsellor. Prior to this I was an IAPT counsellor (as offered by the NHS) for 18 months.
As an accredited and registered member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP), I follow their ethical code. I adhere to GDPR regulations. I am respectful of client privacy and I am registered with the ICO, which promotes data privacy.
Member organisations
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.
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
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.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Therapies offered
Fees
£80.00 per session
Free initial telephone or online session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
No charge made for initial 15-minute consultation by phone or online (Zoom).
Face to face sessions near Kings Cross: £80 for individual therapy and £90 for couples. Please contact me to discuss fees if you are looking for online counselling.
When I work
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I have some daytime and evening availability Monday - Friday in my counselling rooms near King's Cross and Angel or online. Please contact me to enquire.
Further information
I am an experienced secondary school teacher, and prior to working as a counsellor I taught in a range of schools and colleges; I have extensive pastoral and safeguarding experience. I have also worked as a writer and editor and I have lived and worked in East and West Europe and in South and Southeast Asia.
