About me
Have you ever wondered if this is as good as it gets? Do you struggle with low self-esteem, anxiety or feeling sad? Are you worried about your relationship with your partner, your child, or your boss?
My job is to provide a safe, empathic environment where you can explore difficult feelings without worrying what anyone else thinks.
Anxiety - especially health anxiety, social anxiety, perfectionism, or worries about family - often shows up as a result of our early relationships and attachments. If you're managing low self-confidence or worrying thoughts, attachment-based therapy can help you make sense of why you respond the way you do, and develop strategies to feel more in control.
If you're struggling with alcoholism or another addiction I will help you identify the triggers that get in the way of recovery. Stress, loneliness, bereavement, menopause or trauma can all lead to unhealthy coping mechanisms. I have experience of all these, and I use integrative therapy approaches to help you find the answers that work for you.
If you're going through separation and divorce, or dealing with emotional abuse in any relationship - be it with a partner, parent or any other member of your family - I will help you identify what you want, and gain the courage to put in place healthy boundaries to keep yourself emotionally safe as you navigate this difficult time.
I work with clients going through difficult symptoms of menopause, including anxiety and depression, and will help you establish what's needed for you to thrive again.
I also have extensive experience of clients living with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, ME, Fibromyalgia and other long-term medical conditions that can leave you feeling exhausted and hopeless. It is possible to reduce pain and increase energy, improving motivation for life and the things that bring you joy.
With good therapy, you are never alone, and you have more power than you think to change how you feel.
I work online across the UK and in person in my bright offices in St Albans. I offer a free introductory call so I can understand what brings you to therapy, and you can decide if I'm someone you'd like to work with. I genuinely love my job, and I look forward to meeting you.
Helen
Training, qualifications & experience
- Professional diploma in Gestalt therapy.
- One year as a bereavement counsellor in a hospice setting.
- Experience of living with addiction.
- Extensive experience of working with chronic illness, pain and autoimmune conditions.
Member organisations
school Registered / Accredited
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.
The National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society This Not For Profit association of counsellors and psychotherapists aim to support the counselling profession, members and training organisations. In 2013 the NCS register was accredited by the Professional Standards Authority under the Accredited Voluntary Register Scheme. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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
Other areas of counselling I deal with
My specialisms
I also specialise in chronic pain and illness. Emotional pain locked in the body can cause physical pain - I will help you identify triggers and approaches to reduce both.
Chronic illness can be very challenging to live with, impacting every aspect of your life. I can support you to identify strategies for managing the emotional fluctuations that come with the onerous or debilitating physical ups and downs of living with autoimmune conditions or incurable diagnoses.
Therapies offered
Photos & videos
Fees
£70.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
I offer limited concessionary rates and operate a waiting list for these.
Further information
What I can help with
I work with clients experiencing anxiety, depression and low mood (including post-natal depression), self-esteem issues, bereavement and loss, addiction, parenting problems, trauma, infertility, pregnancy loss, and divorce.
I can help with all kinds of relationship difficulties (including problematic family or workplace relationships). Understanding yourself better, and having strategies to manage relationships can help you deepen connections and get more joy from your family and your job.
How I work
As a Gestalt therapist, I will work with what’s happening for you right now and how your past impacts how you feel and respond to life’s challenges today.
However, I use a variety of creative tools and take an integrative approach to help you unlock and process difficult feelings. I can work with sand tray work to help identify inner child issues that are not in conscious awareness. I will support you to discover more about yourself and how you relate to the world and the people in your life.
Equally, if you just want to talk, that's what we'll do.
What does therapy feel like?
Starting therapy can feel daunting, so I recommend you talk to more than one therapist before choosing someone to work with. This is why I offer an initial free chat so I can understand what you want to work on, and you can get a sense of whether I'm the right therapist for you.
Once you start working with me on a weekly basis, we will review the process regularly to make sure therapy is still helpful, or if changes need to be made.
