Experience

For the past twenty years, I have worked closely with people and the issues they face as a result of trauma and difficulties in their lives.

I have primarily worked with various forms of abuse, mainly presenting in relationships; such as physical, emotional and sexual abuse.

For many years I worked in prison settings supporting individuals to understand the links between experiences of childhood trauma and violence, and gained extensive experience working with individuals, families and communities affected by substance use, and with those experiencing multiple disadvantages because of complex mental health.

As the director of a residential, I worked closely with self-harm, eating disorders, anxiety and depression.

In addition to my current private practice work, I am the head of service for a counselling service in Sheffield leading a team of qualified counsellors and counsellors in training, I work with people bereaved by suicide, volunteer for Cruse Bereavement as a bereavement counsellor, work as a volunteer counsellor for a service that supports women and those who identify as women who have depression or related mental health distress, and I dedicate as much time as possible towards my continued personal and professional development.

Interests

I have particular interests in shame, trauma and identity when related to the relationships we have with ourselves, and I am drawn to those concerns we have around searching for significance in the world when seeking to find meaning in our own experiences and in our relationships with others.

I have learned for myself, that facing our experiences is hard and that it can feel difficult to own or hold our painful stories too close to ourselves.

I have also learned that a failure to bring into the light, to talk about, and to share what is true for us no matter how hurtful; heavily contributes towards feelings of loneliness, lost connections, and isolation, and that this in turn adversely affects our ability to experience happiness and good enough mental health and well-being.

Being alongside others in their journey I have learned how my life makes the most sense and how best I find my own place in the world.

I look forward to working with you.