My Approach
I believe that we are a product of our experience, and that when we understand where our difficulties arise from we have the power to change. I feel privileged to occupy a role as a clinical psychologist where I can help people to understand how difficulties have arisen and developed; a role where I can support individuals to see a way forward. In my way of working I prioritise developing a strong therapeutic relationship with you. I endeavour to provide a safe environment where you can feel comfortable to talk about your experience, and my approach is warm, compassionate, honest and authentic. I use a range of evidence based models of psychological therapy to enable us to understand and formulate your experience. The psychological approaches that I use are outlined below.
Psychological Therapies Available
Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS)
IFS therapy is a transformative approach that helps individuals understand and harmonise the various parts of themselves. By recognising that we all have different 'parts' or aspects of our personality, IFS encourages self-exploration and healing. This therapy fosters a compassionate dialogue between these parts, allowing for greater self-awareness and emotional balance. Through IFS, we can achieve a deeper understanding of our inner world, leading to personal growth and improved relationships.
Third Wave CBT Therapies
Third wave cognitive behavioural therapies (CBT) extend traditional CBT by the focusing on the process of thoughts and how we relate to them rather than simply the content of thoughts. These approaches also introduce the concepts of self-care and self-acceptance into CBT. Third wave cognitive therapies include mindfulness based therapies, compassion focused therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy.
Mindfulness Based Therapy
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is an approach that focuses on living in the present moment. Most of us notice that when we feel low, anxious or under stress our mind is often drawn towards what has gone wrong in the past or what could go wrong in the future. As well as focusing on the present, the emphasis of mindfulness is on learning to work with difficult feelings, and accepting ourselves as we are.
Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)
CFT is useful for people who are self critical and experience a high degree of shame. This approach focuses on training our minds to become more understanding and compassionate towards ourselves and others. CFT can help us to learn to tolerate distress and step away from negative judgement and condemnation.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
ACT uses both acceptance and mindfulness strategies, together with commitment and behavioural strategies to increase psychological flexibility. ACT is particularly effective in helping people live in the present moment in a conscious way whilst being able to make meaningful choices and decisions that help us move towards the things in life that are important to us.
Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT)
CAT is a time-limited approach to psychological therapy that combines both CBT and psychoanalytic perspectives. It focuses on understanding how past experiences influence current thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. It is a collaborative approach, with the aim being to identify patterns of thinking and behaviour that have become 'stuck'; helping us to develop new ways of thinking and relating to ourselves and others. This therapy is particularly effective for individuals who experience unhelpful or unhealthy relationship patterns.
An Integrated Approach
A strength of clinical psychologists is that we are trained to work in number of different psychological therapies, meaning that we can draw from or 'integrate' these approaches to address your unique needs. This way of working recognises that no single approach is effective for everyone, and therefore allows us the flexibility of tailoring the therapy to meet your specific issues and preferences. This holistic approach can often lead to new understandings, effective solutions and promote overall well being and personal growth.
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR)
EMDR therapy is a specialised form of psychological therapy designed to help individuals process and heal from traumatic experiences. Through guided eye movements, EMDR aims to reduce the emotional distress associated with memories of trauma. EMDR helps the brain to reorganise or 'reprocess' memories so that they have less influence over us. EMDR is often used to treat conditions such as PTSD, anxiety, and depression, providing a pathway to recovery and emotional well-being.
