Working together to cultivate a discovery of self

Across 9 years of psychodynamic counselling practice, I have come to an approach that is informed by my concurrent practice as an artist-gardener: co-creation, nurturing, growth and transformation are fused in our work together, cultivating the discovery of where and how you can live in yourself and in the world.

The work of therapy resides in a space that we inhabit together, a space where  meaning can be made or found. It is a place in the clearing. Here, lives and held views can be encouraged to be found, to be heard, and to potentially transform.

My areas of focus.

  • Depression & stress

    I have worked across a wide spectrum of specific life circumstances; have uncovered and encountered triggers that cause stress; have unearthed the non-specific feelings or factors that can evoke depression and loss of meaning; and have helped people live with and through the often-debilitating effects.

  • Bereavement

    The period following a deep loss – of loved ones, of a relationship or of a role in the workplace for example – can be a profoundly difficult time. Therapy enables a safe step into the processes of grief and finds essential space, space to make sense of loss, to find ways of making both big and small adjustments, space to build the foundations of a life going forward.

  • Gender, sexuality & relationship diversity (GSRD)

    My work has developed a specific field of experience with supporting people through the process of questioning and discovering their gender identity, their sexuality and their relationship diversity (GSRD). My approach is LGBTQ+ affirmative. I identify as they/them.

  • Terminal & chronic conditions

    I bring specific training and experience of terminal and chronic illness for the person, family and carers, helping all to navigate the emotional complexity of this time and to invoke a language that speaks of it, finding ways into comfort and acceptance and engendering coping mechanisms where possible. I have extensive experience of thinking about, and working with, clients with Cancer, TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) and those with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s or Dementia.

  • Eco-anxiety

    Worrying about, and fear of climate and ecological breakdown can have a negative impact on a person’s capacity to cope in both acute and chronic ways. With both therapeutic and ecological experience, I offer a unique place to help people address eco-anxiety’s specific stress, depression and bereavement.

  • Neurodiversity

    I have a long-term and widening experience of working with neurodiversity, with particular emphasis on ADHD.

My practice brings together the therapeutic experience and training I have undertaken with that of my professions as an artist and gardener – all are fieldwork of a type, all require space, all require responsiveness, attentiveness, commitment and cultivation.

The person, as much as any garden, is an ecology and a landscape, and as much as any artwork, the person is created in relation to others. Practising as an artist and gardener has taught me a great deal about presence and patience. It has also taught me about the nature of transformation, of the gains and the losses that can come with it, and the deep connection between the two.

The invitation of the therapeutic relationship is that of entering into a different kind of conversation, a conversation with a quality that maps the topography of a life, a conversation that holds respect, open curiosity and non-judgment. The therapeutic relationship offers a place to notice and to help connect with the more unconscious ways in which we manage our emotional distress and anxieties. In time it may be possible to make real contact with these more distressed and hidden parts of ourselves, bring greater understanding and attunement, enable transformation to naturally unfold and a deeper resilience to occur and a more abiding sense of self to emerge.

My approach.

  • Psychodynamic

    This approach involves working with your past issues and experiences which are impacting how you live today with the aim to bring about positive benefits to your present and future self.

    The process helps you to open up and speak freely, increase your self-knowledge, to help you consider painful emotions, experiences, thoughts and feelings and deepen your relationship with these symptoms and experiences.

  • How we start

    We begin with a free 30-minute chat to explore what brings you to seek therapy and how we might be able to work together. This is done over the phone or face to face in person or over Zoom. By the end of the conversation, we can agree if we will continue into working together further.

  • How work together

    We meet weekly, at the same time each week, for 50 minutes, either in person at my central Brighton practice or over Zoom. In time for the first session, we both sign a contract that states both of our commitments to this process.

  • How we continue

    The therapeutic process can take time and I ask that you commit to a minimum of 6 months working together. Payment of £65 per session is due on the day of the session, either as bank transfer, PayPal or cash; we agree any breaks in sessions (such as for holidays) in advance; and once we come to an end point, we have 2-3 closing sessions.

I am a qualified British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy registered therapist (Member No:00899058) and hold a Post Graduate Diploma in Psychodynamic Psychotherapeutic Counselling (2019) from University of Brighton. Alongside continuing professional development, I have undertaken GSRD training with queer therapeutic writer Meg John-Barker and Bereavement Training with St. Barnabas Hospice, Worthing.

I have been practicing in a therapeutic environment since 2014, first within the Family Services area of St. Barnabas Hospice, West Sussex, working with the terminally ill and clients suffering profoundly with grief and then going on to join the team at MindOut, a counselling service for Brighton's LGBTQ+ community and as part of the NHS team at The Sussex Cancer Centre (RCH).

I also hold a Creative Writing MA (1998) from University of Sussex, Postgraduate Diploma in Garden Design (2000) from Pickard School of Garden Design, and BA (Hons) in Fine Art (1991) from University of Ulster.