My Services
Individual Psychotherapy
I work collaboratively with individuals; treating everybody as an individual because we are all different and unique. I aim to create a safe and secure environment where I can support you in developing greater self-awareness and understanding of the conscious and unconscious causes of your problems.
I consider therapy to be a joint process; I won’t tell you what to do but will rather engage with you in exploring the dilemmas that you seek to address. I will listen to you and ask questions, suggest possible patterns and often link these to the past, suggest techniques that may be helpful in coping in the short term and work with you in understanding what is happening, why it is happening and working on new ways of being.
Psychotherapy aims to remove the causes of the presenting symptom(s) and enable clients to answer the question ‘why’ in relation to the current problem. In this way the therapy enables clients to live their lives as they would wish.
Couples Therapy
It is likely that couples coming to therapy have brought relating patterns from their own childhood experiences. Some of these are positive and help to sustain and evolve our relationships whilst others have no place in the present. As humans we tend to repeat behaviours unconsciously. Becoming aware of the way we relate provides us with a choice. A choice to do something new rather than endlessly repeating a pattern that we learnt as children or was passed down to us – possibly through generations.
It is often useful to explore such areas as attachment styles, communication styles, conflict management -including how conflicts are ‘repaired’, communication, negotiation around difference, parenting styles, personality types and how these interact, issues around sex, money and extended family, cultural differences, gender differences and neurodiversity.
We may also explore what is working well within the relationship – couples in conflict can often lose sight of the positive aspects of the relationship when becoming problem focused over time. Perhaps unresolved trauma, depression or anxiety in one or both partners is creating difficulty in relating.
I have worked extensively with affairs and betrayal within the couple dynamic. I also have experience working with couples in non-monogamous relationships such as polyamory, for example.
Neurodivergent Couples Group
I offer couples a 6 session group experience. I keep the groups small and generally have 4 to 6 couples on the group Zoom call. Each week we will begin with a topic. These topics will be flexible to meet the needs of the participants but will generally include:
- Neurodiversity - its meaning and impact
- Communication
- Executive Function
- Emotional Regulation
- Conflict Management
- Sex and Intimacy
The sessions last for 1 hour and 40 minutes with a 10 minute break after 45 minutes. Couples can share their experiences and I will also suggest strategies and techniques that the couples can try out and provide learning resources (in a form that works for each couple).
The fee for the 6 fortnightly group sessions is £500 per couple.
Clinical Supervision online, in person and in group
Over the last 16 years or so I have worked as a supervisee with many supervisors; both in organisations (NHS and Relate) and in private practice. I have gained a lot from their different approaches and personalities. My supervision model mirrors my therapy model and is influenced by my core trainings in psychodynamic, systemic and mindfulness based models. In my psychotherapy practice I work with individuals and couples.
I have trained in many different modalities over the years and I am happy to work across modalities and models of therapy. I am not trained to work within a CBT model.
I work collaboratively and relationally. I can provide support and mentoring to newly qualified practitioners and also work in a collegial model with more experienced therapists. I also offer group supervision. Please get in touch to see which supervision groups that I currently have running.
I believe that the supervisor/supervisee/client system continues to grow as the work in each part of the system develops.
I have a fairly down to earth approach to both my psychotherapy and supervision work.
A preliminary meeting of 30 minutes is free of charge. At the moment I am only working online via Zoom.
I charge between £75 and £90 for 1.5 hours of supervision (depending on geographical location) and can offer one hour sessions charged at £50 or £60.
#Menheal - An Online Therapeutic Support Group for Men
For men who are tired of having to ‘man up’
Suicide in the UK is three times more common in men than in women
Society has historically encouraged men to internalise their feelings and not open up. This can often contribute to poor (and hidden) mental health in men.
This is a therapeutic group for men to talk about their mental health. Men can receive support from other men in the group, share experiences and receive therapeutic support from the therapist.
I currently offer one ongoing men's group, running for 90 minutes from 7.30pm on a Thursday evening. The group is aimed at men from Suffolk and Essex. All potential group members will have an initial 20 minute assessment over Zoom before either joining the group or the group waiting list. Each 90 minute group session is charged at £30. Sessions must be paid for in advance in blocks of four.
Please do get in touch for more information.