Nicole Bender
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hello. I am an Integrative therapist with over 15 years experience. I specialise in supporting individuals dealing with the effects and symptoms of stress and various traumas. I work with the mind and the body, so my approach will vary according to your individual needs, which will enable us to deal with a wide range of problems and challenges you may be facing.
We know that sometimes life is difficult, issues from the past and present can affect us all at anytime in our lives leaving us feeling unbalanced. Symptoms may manifest in many different ways, emotionally, physically and mentally. This can leave a person feeling confused, bewildered, or feeling stuck.
Talking to a trained therapist can help make sense of certain difficulties and problems, thereby encouraging you to make positive changes and providing you with some different choices to manage these difficulties.
A very important aspect of therapy is the therapeutic relationship. This relationship is different from ones you have with family and friends. The whole scenario may at first seem daunting which is completely understandable.
To help with this what I suggest is we can have a free 30 minute phone/zoom call to discuss what has brought you to therapy and what your goals and aims may be. I can also give you more information about how I work. This will help give you a better idea if I am the right therapist for you. There is no obligation to agree to continue at the end of the call.
About me
My passion for working with trauma begun whilst working within the criminal justice sector, supporting individuals dealing with various addictions. I wanted to understand, at a deeper level, what caused a person to use a substance or a dysfunctional behaviour to relieve their pain but created more.
My original counselling training was traditional talking therapy. However I understood that to work with trauma it is fundamental to incorporate working with the body and nervous system. Over the last 10 years I have trained in the following trauma modalities and attended various trauma seminars to create a blend of psychology with an holistic approach.
- Studying at the Sensorimotor Institute, which helped me understand the link between the mind and the body and how to work with trauma symptoms and emotions held in the body.
- I gained specialist trauma training L7 PG Diploma at the Naos Institute.
- Trauma certifications in Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- 1 Year studying Compassionate Inquiry with Dr Gabor Mate.
- Understanding Attachment Therapy at the Bowlby Centre.
- Additionally I hold a Reiki Master's certificate and I am currently studying the Andean Medicine Wheel. Which blends psychology with spirituality and takes a minimum of five years to complete.
- This year for my (CPD 2025) I am training to become a breath-work practitioner.
This combination of training and my own personal experience of these therapies enables me to have a wealth of knowledge to work holistically by creating a safe, trusting and non-judgemental relationship. Our relationship will encourage healing and support you to reconnect to your authentic self.
Here is a description of some of the different approaches I use:
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy - Is a body centred approach that treats somatic symptoms of unresolved trauma. I create a safe environment for you to connect to your body and release what the body is holding. This will support you to regain a greater sense of control, and reduce physical and emotional symptoms.
EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing - The primary goal of EMDR is to release traumatic memories and symptoms from the past. EMDR therapy works with emotional responses which have been inter-woven within our physical or somatic state. EMDR uses a body based technique called bilateral simulation. I will guide you through eye movements or taps in order to move a memory that has been stored in a part of our brain (fear centre, called amygdala) which becomes activated to unrelated or related stimuli, to a place in the brain (hippocampus) where the painful memories lose their charge. This treatment integrates past traumatic events and works well in conjunction with other therapies.
Psychodyanmic Therapy - This works by understanding how your past experiences (childhood) influence you in the present. I also work with you to understand your attachment style, developed in childhood, and how these play out in your current relationships.
Person Centred Counselling - Works by building a therapeutic relationship whereby you are able to gain a sense of personal power. This is about identifying how you want to live and then supporting you to achieve your goals.
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy CBT - Works by examining the ways that thought, feelings and behaviour can affect you and how these can influence our actions. We work together in changing your behaviour and/or thinking patterns.
Training, qualifications & experience
- EMDR PART 1, 2 & 3 with Sandi Richman
- Compassionate Inquiry Course with Dr Gabor Mate
- ICISF Critical Incident Stress Management and Debriefing
- NCP Diploma in Trauma Therapy L7
- Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute in Traumatic Memory and Survival Defences
- Attachment Theory in Clinical Practice at The Bowlby Centre
- Reiki Levels 1, 2 & Masters
- CPCAB Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling
- CPCAB Certificate in Understanding Substance misuse
- CRUSE Awareness in Bereavement Care
- I am a Registered and Accredited Member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP)
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.
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
£70.00 per session
Free initial telephone session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Counselling appointments are 50 minutes.
I offer weekly and bi-weekly sessions.
EMDR session 90mins £100
When I work
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Further information
My location is in Bromley BR2. It is a 10 minute walk from Bromley South Station. There are great bus links and off street parking.
Appointments available weekdays, and some evenings.
Please feel free to telephone or email if you would like anymore information.
