Helen Capanda

You may be feeling anxious, overwhelmed or struggling with experiences that continue to affect you. Or perhaps you're concerned about your child or teenager and are unsure how best to support them.

I am a BACP-accredited integrative therapist and EMDR practitioner, offering trauma-informed therapy for adults, children aged 6+, teenagers and parents.

I know that coming to therapy isn't always easy. My aim is to offer a warm, accepting and non-judgemental space where you can bring yourself as you are. Together, we can explore difficult feelings and experiences, make sense of what may be happening and begin to find a way forward.

My approach is collaborative, drawing on talking therapy, EMDR and, where helpful, therapeutic arts, depending on your individual needs.

Working with children and teenagers

Working with children and young people is a part of my practice that I care deeply about. I take time to get to know each child, offering space for play, creativity and connection, helping them feel more settled and confident in themselves and their relationships.

With teenagers, I recognise the importance of having their own space to talk, explore their feelings and experiences, and begin to understand themselves in their own way. I also work alongside parents, helping them understand their child's emotional needs and how best to support them.

Understanding ourselves and our experiences
This work has also taught me that, even as adults, we carry something of our younger selves within us. Our early experiences, relationships and emotional needs can continue to shape how we feel about ourselves, connect with others and respond to life's challenges.

Sometimes we find ourselves responding to situations in ways we don't fully understand, struggling with familiar patterns or carrying the emotional impact of past experiences we thought we had moved beyond.

Therapy offers a space to approach these experiences with curiosity and compassion, without pressure to understand everything or have all the answers right away.

Together, we can gently explore the ways you have learnt to cope with difficult experiences. We can take time to understand what you may have needed in the past, what feels important for you now, and how you might begin to bring this into your everyday life.

My therapeutic approach

I also draw on trauma-informed parts work, informed by Janina Fisher's approach, helping us understand and relate differently to aspects of ourselves that may have developed in response to difficult experiences.

Alongside talking therapy, I offer EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), an evidence-based approach that can help people process traumatic or distressing experiences.

EMDR can help us work with the feelings, beliefs and bodily responses connected to these experiences, supporting the integration of new understanding and more helpful ways of relating to ourselves and the world.

We can think together about which approach may be most helpful for you, whether that is talking therapy, EMDR or a combination of both.

Neurodiversity and creativity

I have experience supporting neurodivergent children, young people and adults, including those with ADHD, autism, AuDHD and dyslexia. As a neurodivergent therapist myself, I bring both professional understanding and lived experience to my work.

My approach is neuro-affirming and inclusive, recognising that everyone experiences and makes sense of the world differently.  As a neurodivergent therapist myself, I bring both professional understanding and lived experience to my work.

I aim to understand each person's individual needs and adapt how we work together, rather than expecting them to fit a particular way of doing therapy.

Creativity has been an important part of my life and work for over three decades. Before becoming a counsellor, I worked for many years as an art teacher, and this experience continues to inform my therapeutic practice.

Sometimes feelings and experiences can be difficult to express through words alone. Where helpful, we can draw on therapeutic arts, play and imagination as another way of exploring and communicating what may be happening.

Creative approaches are always optional and can sit alongside talking therapy.

Appointments and getting in touch

I offer in-person therapy from my private practice in Wallington, with additional appointments available in Streatham, as well as online therapy.

If you're thinking about therapy for yourself or your child, you're very welcome to get in touch. We can begin with a conversation and take things from there.

I offer a free 20-minute telephone consultation, giving you an opportunity to ask questions and explore whether working together feels right.

Session fees vary depending on whether appointments take place in Wallington or Streatham Common. I am happy to discuss the available options and fees during our initial conversation.

Payment is requested in advance to secure your appointment. I operate a 48-hour cancellation policy, which I will explain before we begin working together.

I offer in-person therapy from my private practice in Wallington, with additional appointments available in Streatham, as well as Online Sessions.

I work with adults, children aged 6+, teenagers and parents. We can discuss whether in-person or online therapy would be most suitable for you or your child.

I offer a free 20-minute telephone consultation, giving us an opportunity to talk briefly about what has brought you to therapy, ask any questions you may have and consider whether working together feels right.

I recognise that finding the right therapist is an important decision, and there is no obligation to continue following our initial conversation.