About me
If you are living with anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem, and you are a man or woman from a Black or Asian background, you may find that these experiences are shaped by pressures that go unspoken or unrecognised by those around you.
You may be experiencing:
- Struggling with family and cultural expectations
- Questions about your cultural identity
- Feeling anxious with the amount of responsibility you carry
- Struggling to find your place and belonging
- Living a double life, whilst judging what you desire and what is expected from you
- Confusing feelings about your sexuality
These are struggles which may be invisible expectations that you carry around within yourself. They can lead to feelings of depression, isolation, anger, panic attacks and anxiety, but you keep finding yourself just getting on with things. While you may be experiencing relationship breakdowns and feeling misunderstood by those around you.
These are not background details. They are central to who you are and how you experience the world.
I take an intersectional approach, which means I don't separate the personal from the political or the individual from their context. Whether you are navigating intergenerational trauma, faith-based expectations, experiences of marginalisation, or simply the pressure of being the one in your family who is supposed to hold it all together, I will meet you with curiosity, care and cultural humility.
I am LGBTQ+ affirming and neurodivergent-friendly, and I am committed to creating a therapy space where difference is not just tolerated but genuinely understood.
Can therapy help:
You may feel torn, part of you wanting to try therapy, while another part holds back. Thoughts like 'I'll be okay', 'I don't have the time', or 'others have it worse than me' are incredibly common, and often part of how we protect ourselves from vulnerability, particularly if you lean toward an avoidant attachment style.
I understand that attachment styles play a vital role in how we form relationships, and many of us have an avoidant attachment style:
- Finding it harder to trust others
- The need to be self-reliant
- Avoiding committing to long-term relationships
- Struggling to name your emotions and feeling disconnected
This can make reaching out for therapy very difficult, and brings with it questions about its effectiveness. You may be wondering if anyone would really understand your struggles. But the fact that you're here, reading this, says something important. There is a part of you that is ready. I'd encourage you to trust that part.
Reach out for a free consultation call, no pressure, no commitment. Just a conversation.
Therapy can offer something you may not have had before: a private, honest space that is entirely yours, free from expectation. I will meet you with a gentle and accepting approach, deepening my connection to your unique experience, allowing you to share something that feels immensely difficult or painful. I will hear your story without blame or judgement. I believe that the therapeutic relationship is vital to building trust at your pace.
Taking the first step can feel difficult. If you're considering it, feel free to get in touch for an initial conversation.
My Approach:
My main approach is psychodynamic psychotherapy, a way of working that holds both the present and the past in mind. Together, we explore not just what is happening in your life now, but how earlier experiences, particularly early relationships, may still be shaping how you feel, think, and relate to others.
Much of what drives our emotional lives operates beneath the surface. You might notice patterns that feel hard to shift, such as:
- A tendency toward self-criticism or low self-worth.
- Anxiety in close relationships or difficulty trusting others
- Struggling to express what you need
- Feelings of not belonging or displacement
- The weight of unspoken or unacknowledged experiences
These patterns often have roots in family dynamics, cultural expectations, or experiences of loss. I work gently and collaboratively to help you become more aware of them, at a pace that feels right for you.
I also recognise that for some clients, these patterns have been shaped by living in a world that hasn't always seen them fully. Internalised messages about race, identity, gender, or worth can sit deep, and psychodynamic work offers a space to examine where those messages came from, and whether they still need the hold they have.
The therapeutic relationship is central to this work. How we relate to each other can reflect something important about how you relate in the rest of your life. I aim to offer a space where you feel genuinely understood and accepted somewhere something different can begin to take shape.
I offer:
Long-term psychodynamic therapy for those wishing to explore things in depth
Shorter-term CBT for more focused, goal-oriented work.
What to Expect:
We begin with a free 15-minute consultation call, a chance to meet, ask questions, and get a sense of whether I feel like the right fit. If you decide you'd like to work with me, I'll invite you for an assessment session, where we can think together about the type and length of work that suits you best.
Sessions are held for 50 minutes, on a weekly basis and take place either online or in person. Everything you share is held in confidence, within a space designed to feel as safe and open as possible.
Training, qualifications & experience
I have 20 years of experience in mental health, supporting both children and adults. My background includes work at the Priory Hospital, NHS, and Child and Adolescence Mental Health Services using my CBT experience. I have also worked in the charity sector, offering psychodynamic psychotherapy. My experience has allowed me to work with people from all walks of life.
Qualifications:
- MSc Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and Counselling (Merit) - Birkbeck, University of London.
- Graduate Certificate in Psychodynamic Practice (Merit) - Birkbeck, University of London.
- Postgraduate diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (Improving Access to Psychological Therapy) - Royal Holloway
- Master of Science (MSc) - Cognitive Neuropsychology - Oxford Brookes University
- Bachelor of Science (Hons) - Psychology - Staffordshire University
I am currently studying a foundation course in group analysis at the Institute of Group Analysis, where we explore how sibling and family dynamics impact our experiences in different group situations.
Member organisations
The BABCP is the lead organisation for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in the UK. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in the practice, theory or development of CBT. BABCP also provides accreditation for CBT therapists. BABCP accredited members adhere to the Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics in the Practice of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies, and are willing to be scrutinised in this adherence as required.
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
Fees
£75.00 - £100.00
Additional information
I currently have availability for two clients at a reduced fee. These spaces are specifically set aside for people who: Identify as LGBTQ+, who work in the entertainment industry and on a low income.
If you are feeling unsure about therapy, I'm offering a block of 6 CBT sessions at a reduced fee £486.00 (10% discount).
Please don't hesitate to reach out to discuss these options further.
When I work
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Further information
If you would like to have a chat, then please email me, and we can arrange a 10-15 minute call to see if I can support you.
