I worked within NHS mental health services for 14 years. I completed my CBT training in 2011 and I have extensive experience of using CBT to help people work with emotional problems such as:

• Depression
• Low self-esteem
• Panic attacks and agoraphobia
• Social Anxiety Disorder
• Chronic worry (or Generalised Anxiety Disorder)
• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Phobias
• Health anxiety
• Sleep difficulties
• Body image difficulties
• Some eating disorders
• Perfectionism

I recognise just how difficult it can be to ask for help and to start a course of therapy. I believe it is important to provide a safe and supportive environment and establish a trusting therapeutic relationship from the outset. This can help people to take the necessary steps that will ultimately reduce emotional distress and improve the quality of their lives. CBT focuses on helping people to develop a better understanding of their difficulties and learn new ways of thinking and acting. I adopt a compassionate, non-judgmental, and collaborative approach with all patients.

I am also a qualified clinical supervisor and have provided supervision to individual therapists and groups, from trainees to more experienced therapists. I am a teacher, tutor, and clinical supervisor on the IAPT CBT course at the University of Sheffield, which trains future CBT Therapists. Furthermore, I am the Programme Director for the Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Supervision, which trains clinical supervisors who supervise Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs) working within schools helping children of all ages. I am also the Programme Director for the IAPT Supervisor Programme, which trains clinical supervisors who supervise clinicians working within IAPT services.

I have enjoyed delivering workshops and career talks to local universities and to the public. I also acted as a discussant for a symposium on ‘IAPT and Primary Care’ and delivered a workshop at the 2019 BABCP national conference. The title of the workshop was ‘Maximising your effectiveness as a CBT Therapist’. Indeed, spreading the word of CBT and that mental health matters is something I am very passionate about.

I receive regular clinical supervision and ensure I am up to date with the latest developments in CBT. I am committed to Continued Professional Development and I am an accredited member of the BABCP. I am DBS checked and have Public Liability Insurance.

Having been particularly interested in cognitive behavioural therapy, I completed a basic skills course in 1999 and went on to complete a masters degree in psychosocial interventions and a post graduate diploma in cognitive behavioural psychotherapy. I am also trained in EMDR and DBT.

I have worked as a psychotherapist for the NHS for the last 13 years and during that time, helped to set up and teach on the IAPT high intensity CBT course at the University of Sheffield, for which our team won a Fellowship Award.

In the last 20 years I have worked with a diverse range of mental health problems with individuals and groups. I am particularly interested in helping people to understand how mental health problems develop, how they are maintained and most importantly, how they can be overcome.

I have worked within an NHS Primary Care setting since 2010, providing assessment and treatment for common mental health difficulties for adults, and with students at a local college. I undertake regular clinical supervision and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) which ensures I develop and further my skills in line with evidence based research. I am a lecturer and supervisor of Trainee Cognitive Behavioural Therapists on the High Intensity Psychological Interventions (HIPI) course at the University of Sheffield. I am trained in Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR) and Cognitive Behavioural Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) which is specifically developed for treating persistent depression.

I have had the pleasure of working with people from different backgrounds and aim to support them to increase confidence and attain recovery, through the use of evidence based treatment and an open, honest and safe therapeutic alliance.

These have included; OCD, Trauma / PTSD, GAD, Health Anxiety, Social Phobia, Panic and Depression. I have a particular interest in Eating Disorders and currently work at a specialist eating disorder service.

I am qualified in a number of therapies including, Counselling, CBT, EMDR, CBASP, Mindfulness and CFT.

My approach is to create a safe space to reach a shared understanding with people of their problems that are impacting on them. Helping them improve the quality of their lives by learning and developing strategies to move forward now and for their future.

I am a fully accredited member of BABCP and undertake regular clinical supervision and CPD to develop and further my skills to ensure I can offer the most appropriate, timely and effective interventions.

I really enjoy getting to know people and helping them understand how they can make their lives better. My main goal is to help people to perform better by improving a problem, a condition or how they can aspire to achieve what they want from life.

Evidence based treatments are all about results. I undertake helping people reach their full potential safely and collaboratively. Of paramount importance is that therapy works for you and helps you to thrive not just survive! People recovering from a clinical mental health condition or those restricted from reaching their full potential in their work, study, social lives, and relationships all can be helped and enabled by the therapy I can deliver.

Formulating an effective and efficient way of helping you to achieve your goals, is one of the keys to a successful treatment. Having worked in mental health and psychotherapy for over 30 years in the NHS and private practice as a therapist, trainer, consultant, and supervisor, I have acquired, developed and fine-tuned the required skills set and experience allowing me to do so.

The other key is to establish a highly collaborative and mutually committed relationship with you, where you feel safe, held, understood and coached to take on board changes that require courage, as this is where real results are found.

I am passionate about therapy, and my particular interest is to help people who may have had other unhelpful experiences. These could be a previous negative experience with CBT, with other forms of therapy or being new to therapy. It is not uncommon that people in these situations are sceptical, uncertain, or fearful perhaps of what to expect, or what change and therapy may involve.

If you believe now is the time to change and you are prepared to venture with someone who wants to guide and mentor you and is equally excited at the prospect of being there to help I am the therapist you might be looking for.

I have a wide range of knowledge, skills and experience of working in both general and mental health settings within the NHS over 28years, and also in the voluntary and private sector. My mental health psychotherapy work includes, Lead Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist in Primary care & IAPT NHS, CBT in NHS Secondary care & Early Intervention, and CBT in an NHS pain management unit. My experience additionally includes working as a therapist in a rape & sexual abuse service, a therapist for survivors of torture, a co-ordinator in a women’s psychotherapy & counselling service, a therapist for staff & students in a 6th Form College and a therapist for staff & students in a University Counselling and psychotherapy service.

I currently provide CBT, working with individuals experiencing a broad range of common mental health difficulties, including trauma, anxiety disorders, work related stress, depression, and pain management, and I additionally provide EMDR for trauma related problems.

I never underestimate what it takes for individuals to contact a therapist, and I have much respect and admiration for the courage demonstrated by clients during the process of therapy. I hold a strong belief in the CBT and EMDR evidence based approaches, when they are assessed as appropriate to meet the client’s psychological and emotional needs, and I have regularly evidenced clients’ achievements, and positive change, throughout the therapeutic contact.

After my BSc(Hons) Psychology, I embarked on my Psychotherapy training with the University of Manchester, graduating with a Post Graduate Diploma in Cognitive Therapy in 2004.

Since then, I have worked in Service Development roles in Severe and Enduring Mental Health and worked in Senior roles in the NHS Primary and Secondary Care Psychology Services, and as a Consultant Psychotherapist in Forensic Psychiatry, successfully developing a Psychotherapy department and service in a Secure Hospital. I have also worked as Modality Lead in an NHS IAPT Service, and for a time in full time Private Practice. I currently work in Secondary Care Psychology for complex psychological presentations.

I have worked with most psychological difficulties, and am comfortable treating adolescents and adults. I am also qualified in Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (Parts I,II and III), and HCR-20 (Historical Clinical Risk). I have also completed my IAPT Supervisors Training (University of York), and have Clinically Supervised Post Graduate Psychotherapy Students, Clinical Psychology Trainees, and Medical Doctors completing Mental Health Training and Psychotherapy Training. I am also experienced in providing training, teaching, and have co-presented a Psychological model of Compulsive Buying at the BABCP Conference in Exeter.

I strongly believe in a good strong therapeutic relationship based on trust, respect and equality in sessions. I want people to be heard, and I believe in achieving a shared understanding of a problem as being a strong foundation to successful treatment.