About me
I'm Liz, an experienced psychotherapist specialising in supporting people affected by trauma or mental health difficulties, and those stuck in painful patterms, such as addictions or family and relationship problems.
Many people come to therapy feeling overwhelmed and alone with difficult emotions. You might be anxious, depressed, grieving, or finding it hard to hold things together in work and relationships. You might be using drugs, alcohol or other means to get through the day.
I provide an accepting, thoughtful space for you to understand painful or confusing feelings. My clients have told me I make them feel like they matter, which has helped them make important changes.
My Experience
I have over 20 years' experience working in mental health and addiction services, including in the NHS. I initially trained as a social worker, and an MBT therapist and then completed a master's degree in psychodynamic psychotherapy.
I have extensive experience of working with people who have mental health and addiction problems, often due to trauma, loss or difficulties in childhood relationships.
I bring both clinical experience and compassion to this work, with a belief that therapy can help people feel more understood, more secure in themselves, and better able to cope with life's challenges.
My Approach
I'm trained in psychodynamic therapy, which means I help you explore how past experiences and relationships may be shaping how you think and feel in the present.
Often early experiences in families don’t set us up to navigate life's challenges, or they may have created unhelpful patterns. I will support you to make links between painful or confusing experiences and the ways you've found to cope, reducing shame and self-blame.
Making these connections brings deeper understanding and opens new possibilities for lasting change, helping to break repeating patterns in relationships or behaviours.
I work in a trauma-informed way, which means I pay close attention to helping you feel safe, and we work at a pace that feels manageable for you.
Therapy with me is collaborative, reflective, and grounded in building a trusting relationship. Exploring your difficulties in a safe environment can help them feel more manageable, giving you greater confidence and self-acceptance.
Practical details
I offer weekly 50-minute sessions on an open-ended or short-term basis. Sessions are available online and in person in Archway/Tufnell Park, N19.
Getting in touch
I offer a free initial phone consultation, which gives us a chance to talk about what has brought you to therapy, any questions you may have, and whether working together feels like the right fit.
If you want to learn more or book a session, you can call or text me on 07480 067887, email lizbarnestherapy@gmail.com, or get in touch via this site.
See below for more information on the areas I can help with.
Mental health difficulties and low self-esteem - Self-criticism can be connected to anxiety, depression, self-doubt and feeling “not enough.” It creates painful emotions and challenges in work and relationships. Therapy can help you explore where these feelings come from and begin to loosen their hold.
Trauma and abuse - I have worked extensively with people who've experienced trauma, including emotional or physical neglect or abuse and sexual abuse. Effects of trauma can be wide-reaching, impacting on your life and relationships. The therapy relationship is an important tool through which we can understand and address these difficulties.
Family and relationship issues - Whether these issues took place in the past, or they are happening right now, they can be painful and confusing. Therapy can help you understand these dynamics more clearly and work through the feelings they bring up.
Addiction - I work with people struggling with problematic drug or alcohol use, as well as gambling and sex addiction. These behaviours often begin as ways of coping with distress, but can come to create further pain and isolation. Therapy can help you change patterns that no longer serve you, and understand the emotional difficulties behind them.
Training, qualifications & experience
I have over 20 years' experience working in mental health and addiction services, including within the NHS. I’ve supported people living with emotional difficulties and trauma, both individually and in therapeutic groups.
I’m a BACP-registered psychotherapist with a Master's degree in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and Counselling from Birkbeck, University of London, one of the UK's leading psychotherapy training programmes. I also hold a Master's degree in Social Work.
Over the years, I’ve completed further training in Motivational Interviewing, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Mentalisation-Based Treatment (MBT), and working with trauma.
This means I bring both depth and flexibility to my work, drawing on different therapeutic ideas where helpful to support your individual needs.
My work and training have given me a strong understanding of the ways trauma, abuse, addiction, and mental health difficulties can shape a person's inner world, relationships, and day-to-day life.
I bring this experience to my private practice with thoughtfulness, and a commitment to helping people feel more understood, more secure, and better able to cope.
Alongside my private practice, I work for a charity offering low-cost therapy for people with mental health difficulties, and I facilitate support groups for people affected by cancer.
I'm also a trustee of a homelessness charity, where I support staff through supervision and offer consultation on safeguarding.
Member organisations
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
Photos & videos
Fees
£60.00 - £75.00
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Ask me about concessions.
When I work
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