How I Work

Practice description

I will create and maintain a safe and consistent space for you to be able to discuss and process your difficulties in. Part of my approach involves ongoing psychological formulation, which describes the way a psychologist will draw on multiple models and theories to understand, and form a map, or story of your difficulties. I take a holistic approach to formulation, rather than thinking in terms of mental health diagnoses. This approach gives equal weight to how mental health is shaped by early experience, relationships, adaptations to adversity and biology.

My therapeutic approach is largely based on exploring unconscious feelings, behaviours and patterns within the context of a developing formulation. This means I will encourage, support and gently challenge you to access thoughts, emotions, and memories that you may be less aware of, or which you may avoid entirely, due to the strength of feelings connected to them. Gradually addressing these barriers will reduce the impact and intensity of the more conscious symptoms that have brought you to therapy, for example anxiety and depression, OCD, panic or unhelpful relationship patterns.

An important part of the work will be based on exploring your past and current relationships. The relationship we develop in the therapy room will often mirror these early relationships in a helpful way, allowing us to learn about these important feelings and patterns in a safe space. The therapeutic relationship will therefore be the foundation for much of the work we do and I will encourage you to become more aware of and to reflect on what happens. It is the professional quality to this new kind of healing relationship that will allow for productive and safe change to gradually unfold.

I am particularly interested in the neurodevelopmental evidence, drawing on the work of authors like; Allan Schore, Jaak Panksepp, Mark Solms, Antonio Damasio, and Van Der Kolk. I seek to integrate this with the analytical ideas of the British Independent Group – Winnicott, Fairburn & Bowlby.

Assessment

I will ask you to complete some simple baseline measures prior to our initial meeting. Our first meeting will be for you to see if you feel comfortable with me. I will listen carefully to what you bring and try to understand if my skills and experience are likely to be helpful to you.

I suggest we meet for 1-3 sessions before deciding whether to start work together.

Frequency & length

I often see patients once a week, though sometimes two sessions a week is more appropriate.

Sessions are 60 minutes and we normally sit facing one another, though a couch is also available.