About me
My philosophy
I am a Chartered Counselling Psychologist who truly believes that everybody is capable of making meaningful changes to their lives when they experience emotional difficulties, relationship problems, they are stuck or not happy with the way the live their life. The key to making changes is the motivation to explore and challenge oneself. People are the expert of their own experiences and I can be part of their journey leading to self-discovery and change.
I always strive to provide a safe, welcoming and non-judgmental environment to enable people to feel comfortable enough to share their difficulties with me and to work together to explore these in depth and find a way forward in order to overcome difficulties.
How therapy can help
I believe in the power of the therapeutic relationship and how this can in itself enable people to make changes or function as a base upon which various therapeutic tools can be learnt. I see therapy as a special human encounter where many dynamics that people experience in the outside world are similarly re-created. Therefore therapy gives people the chance to explore these dynamics in a way that is safe and they can then utilise their understanding, new learning and insight outside within their day to day lives and relationships.
My approach
I am particularly interested in how people’s early and later life experiences affect their current relationships, feelings, thoughts, behaviours and current experiences. My approach can be defined as Integrative and Relational. This means that whilst using the therapeutic relationship as a base, I draw upon various evidence-based therapeutic approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), Psychodynamic and Person-Centred Therapy, EMDR. These approaches are commonly accepted and scientifically proven in our field. My therapeutic style is creative and always adapted to people’s needs. However sometimes working within one of these approaches over others will be more beneficial to some people. Everybody is different and my style will try to capture this.
What to expect in your first session
It is important that we both feel that we can work together, and therefore our first meeting can be our chance to explore this. It is fundamental that you work with someone who is right for you and you feel comfortable with. For this reason you do not need to commit to ongoing therapy when you make your first contact with me. The first session is an assessment, I will be asking you some general questions in order to begin to get an understanding of your problems and also of you as a person, and it is also your chance to get to experience how I work and ask me any questions. If we come to the agreement that we can go ahead with ongoing therapy we can then discuss a therapeutic contract.
Not sure about wanting to book a first session?
If you are searching for the right therapist and are unsure about whether to book a first session, I can offer you a first telephone appointment for 30 minutes free of charge. This can give you the chance to hopefully decide whether you want to book a first appointment with me with no commitment. You do not have to go through the first telephone appointment if you wish to book a first session directly.
Services Provided
- Short, medium and long term Psychological Therapy
- Therapy can be in both English and Italian languages
- Clinical Supervision - I completed the full Supervisor Training delivered by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and supervised a number of trainees and qualified Psychologist over the years.
- Specific modalities provided:
Cognitive Behaviural Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT)
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR)
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Person Centred therapy
Training, qualifications & experience
Professional Registrations
I am registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). I am also chartered by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and I hold full membership of the BPS division of Counselling Psychology.
Qualifications
- BSc in Psychology
- Practitioner Doctorate in Counselling Psychology (DPsych).
Specialist Trainings:
- EMDR (Level 1,2 and 3)
- BPS Approved Certificate in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Compassion Focus Therapy (CFT)-various trainings up to advanced level
Experience
I have spent the past several years working initially as a trainee and then as a qualified Counselling Psychologist (since 2012) in a range of environments, particularly within the National Health Service (NHS), but also within the private sector. I have extensive experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a wide variety of mental health difficulties and of different complexity and severity, including common mental health problems (e.g. depression, a range of anxiety disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), personality disorders, psychosis, depressive illness, personality difficulties, and adjustment disorders. This has involved short, medium and long -term episodes of treatment. I also gained experience of facilitating therapy groups for clients and carers, of designing psychoeducational and self-help programmes and of providing supervision and consultation.
I mainly worked in NHS Primary and Secondary care services such as IAPT services and Community Mental Health Teams. Prior to my Doctorate I worked in Inpatients Forensic Personality Disorders Service.
Over the last number of years I have worked as a senior psychologist in a Psychosis Service within a Community Mental Health Team in one of the main NHS Trusts in London, alongside my private practice. I particularly specialised in supporting people with unusual experiences such as hearing voices and unusual believes. I have been involved in facilitating hearing voices groups to support people with these experiences with social inclusion, to reduce shame and anxiety, reduce stigma and to feel connected with others who have similar experiences.
Most recently I have been working as a Lead Psychologist for Acute and Crisis services within the NHS, managing a team of Psychologists working across the Acute Inpatient Wards and Crisis Teams. I have been further developing my leadership skills and in my clinical work I have further specialised in supporting people at the moment of a mental health crisis often experience suicidal thoughts and self-harming urges or a deterioration of their day to day functioning and symptoms of mental distress. The presentations can vary from psychosis to complex emotional needs, anxiety, depression, ASD, ADHD and many more. I support people manage the crisis and finding a way forward to see a future again. I promote Trauma Informed and Person-Centred ways or working and I am working on creating strategies to support NHS services also working within Trauma Informed Practices.
I continue running my Private Practice alongside my NHS work and I can work with most presenting concerns.
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.
British Psychological Society
The HCPC are an independent, UK-wide health regulator. They set standards of professional training, performance and conduct for 16 professions.
They keep a register of health professionals who meet their standards, and they take action if registered health professionals fall below those standards. They were created by a piece of legislation called the Health Professions Order 2001.
Registration means that a health professional meets national standards for their professional training, performance and conduct.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Therapies offered
Fees
£100.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Health Insurance/EAP
Additional information
Sessions are 50 minutes long
INITIAL 30 MINUTES TELEPHONE/0NLINE CONSULTATION: Free
SESSION FEE: £100
STUDENTS (Therapy and Supervision): sliding scale upon discussion and depending on circumstances
INSURANCE: I am registered with Insurance Healthcare Providers such as BUPA, AXA PPP, AVIVA, VITALITY.
CONCESSIONS: can sometimes be available upon discussion on a sliding scale for students, key workers, people with low income/financial difficulties or other particular circumstances.
When I work
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At present I am available for some day time and evening sessions on weekdays.
Further information
I work within the framework of the Code of Ethics and Conduct of the British Psychological Society (BPS), the Professional Practice Guidelines for Counselling Psychologists (BPS) and the Standards of the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
