ABOUT
I am the founder and clinical director of Advanced Therapeutic Services. Having run a counselling and psychotherapy private practice alongside working in addiction treatment over the last ten years, I decided to start a company so that I could extend the services I offer. I am honoured to have worked alongside many other clinicians in the field of counselling, psychotherapy, addiction treatment, and coaching, therefore I have a large network of specialists and experts in their field that I can refer to and work alongside where needed. I therefore offer an assessment and referral service in addition to the various other services I personally deliver.
Upon an initial assessment I will be able to get an understanding of you, your history, and your presenting issues. I will then be able to give my clinical perspective and recommendations, develop a treatment plan for you, work with you personally if desired or refer you for the suitable care and treatment required based on your individual circumstances and needs. This may also involve a referral for some form of specialised treatment, personalised coaching, a dietician, a health professional, a psychiatrist, or another therapist according to your needs.
Having completed my foundational three years of training in integrative psychotherapy and becoming qualified back in 2014, I have gone on to do further training including trauma focused training which was of a transpersonal psychology perspective. This covered family systems, couples work, inner child work, empty chair work, with a holistic focus on addressing and uprooting trauma.
I have also done attachment training at The John Bowlby Centre who is the founder of attachment theory. I find this especially meaningful to any therapeutic relationship as early relationships and experiences with parents or caregivers have really significant impacts on the way we are shaped, what we believe about ourselves, others, and the world. This can really determine how we function in relationships, it is for this reason that I hold this in mind in and integrate it into the therapy that I offer, particularly if this is long term.
In addition to this, I have a particular passion for helping people to recover from addiction. I have been privileged to work in a clinical setting in one of the UK’s leading addiction treatment centres for the last ten years. I have been honoured to develop a team leader role within this setting which has involved assessing managing and overseeing the treatment for many clients and their loved ones. It has also involved supporting, supervising, and managing a team to deliver the best treatment possible. It has also involved assessments, care plans, referrals and assessing risk where necessary.
I have been touched to witness numerous people overcome addiction, and it has brought great joy to me to see them go on to become the men and women that they were meant to be. To see them be reunited with their loved ones, regain good health, build long term meaningful recovery, and go on to do wonderful things in their lives.
Throughout my years of working in addiction treatment, I have been able to deliver various workshops, lectures, and groups in addition to one-to-one work. I believe there is great power in group work particularly with addiction treatment or specific groups of people. The healing that can come about through group work found in identification that brings about empathy and reduces shame is extremely powerful, and meaningful to witness so this is one of my many passions.
During my foundational training, I did one of my learning placements with families, and during my years of working in the field of counselling and psychotherapy, I have been able to support many couples and families to face various difficulties including addiction, betrayal, intimacy issues, communication problems, parenting, behavioural difficulties, and general challenges of being in relationships, marriages, or families. This is something I have a lot of experience with. I am especially passionate about the healing of and working through the many complications that can come in these areas.
I was trained as a recovery coach by The Recovery Coach Academy by one of my mentors whose expertise in treating addiction has been transformative to my learning and development. I incorporate the coaching I am trained in to deliver into the work I do where necessary, as it is very helpful when it comes to certain aspects of life when a more goal focused and accountability approach is required, as it often is in my experience. This allows further flexibility to meet a client’s needs and goes beyond the boundaries of counselling and psychotherapy.
I am committed to continued professional development and studying any new emerging evidence or modalities to keep my learning fresh and up to date. As we learn more about neuroscience, the body and the mind, the methods for helping people to overcome or treat numerous difficulties are growing, therefore advancing how healing, recovery, and freedom can be obtained.
As part of my continued professional development, I have done various up to date short courses in shame, trauma, further attachment training, borderline personality disorders, narcissistic personality disorders, and eating disorders to name a few.
I am also committed to ongoing regular supervision and adhering to the ethics of The British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy who I am a long-standing member of. This ensures good ethics, good practice, and upholding the confidentiality of all the work that I do, alongside being insured to do so.