Can therapy help me?
Some examples of why people come to see me include: relationship or family difficulties, trauma (particularly related to childhood experiences), identity issues (often related to neurodivergence and / or gender and sexual identity), anxiety, feeling low or depressed, life changes and transitions, low self worth.
You may feel as though the “same old” dynamics and situations keep happening – different scenarios but the same familiar feelings and reactions. Maybe you sense that there is something important you need to grasp hold of about yourself.
I'm a qualified and accredited psychotherapist with 24 years' experience in this field. Therapy works through the close attention we give to who you are at your core. We support the healing and integration of the aspects of you which have been harmed, denied and suppressed. This in turn helps parts of you which have been over-working to keep this all this at bay to soften and change. Your sense of clarity and focus grows through therapy, your confidence increases and your choices become more fulfilling.
I see you as a whole person doing the best you can to manage whatever life has dealt you. I am fully aligned with the neurodiversity paradigm, firmly rejecting the medicalised view of autism and other neurodivergence as disordered. I welcome and prize members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
My office is in Carrickfergus, 12 miles along the coast from Belfast in Northern Ireland.
Supervision
Are you looking for a supervision experience which is a little bit - or a lot! - different? Maybe you have a niche you are developing, a particular client group you want to learn more about, maybe you are training in one of the approaches I use ... or maybe you are simply curious and want to see what would emerge if you allowed yourself to step outside the norm?
IFS
"A part of me thinks ... another part of me wonders ..." If this is you and you're open to the idea of working with your "parts" IFS might be a good fit.
Internal Family Systems is an internationally renowned approach to therapy. It is particularly effective for developmental (childhood) and complex trauma. IFS is based on the idea that aspects of ourselves get "stuck" or weighed down in certain roles. These parts tend to be very good at protecting the more traumatised aspects of ourselves, however this in itself holds the whole person back as it prevents deeper healing, integration and fulfilment.
Jungian Sandplay
This is a gentle, non verbal approach which can affect powerful change on a deep level often inaccessible to our "thinking" minds.
Neurodiversity
I'm neurodivergent myself (autistic, ADHD, highly sensitive)
I love co-creating and re-imagining the therapy space with fellow neurodivergent people. Many come to me at various stages on their journeys of self discovery and may be unlearning deficit based identifications and self concepts. As traditional therapy settings and "norms" have often been unhelpful for us, my desire is to offer a space which is neurodivergence affirming and celebratory at its core. SPINS and stims are welcome and encouraged; eye contact and sitting in chairs opposite each other is rather rare and we do actually often smile and enjoy the connection we share!
