My Approach

Providing a non-judgemental, safe, and supportive environment for the creative process to take place, helping clients to feel held. I offer an opportunity for clients to make art to bring the unconscious mind into the conscious. This can help clients to identify deep-rooted feelings and work to resolve them. Our unconscious can hold onto painful feelings and memories, which are often too difficult for the conscious mind to process. Art making can feel like a safe way to tune into these feelings and memories and in turn, help us to heal. You may not wish to make art, which is absolutely fine.

Many of the clients I work with, seek practical, evidence-based psychoeducational tools to help maintain positive mental wellbeing. As part of my practice with young people in particular, I often work with clients to explore strategies that may prove useful for them, for example tricks and tips on how to manage anxiety perhaps via the use of art making, journaling, meditation, mindfulness, wellbeing apps and such. I can offer psychoeducational groups for children and young people on a range of different topics, including: Grief and loss, Gender identity, Managing stress & anxiety and Positive thinking/resilience.

I provide younger clients with an opportunity to use art materials freely, as well as the sand tray, doll’s house, small world items, games etc. Observing their process allows me to interpret their play as a product of their inner world. Older children may well use the therapy space for up to an hour. Younger children may only need the space for up to half an hour. I ask that parents/carers complete a short referral form which provides me with some insight into what is going on for their child at present. This, along with a short conversation allows us to plan for a session that will serve to meet your child’s needs.

Mentalisation-based therapy (MBT) refers to the ability to think about thinking. It is an approach that helps us to make sense of our thoughts and feelings as well as those around us and how this impacts on actions and behaviours. Mentalising is something that we often do as part of everyday life but in some situations, clients can find it more difficult to mentalise than in others. I use a variety of mentalisation techniques with clients often via art making, to help clients make sense of the world around them.