Therapies
My therapeutic approach
I primarily draw on third-wave cognitive-behavioural therapies — evidence-based approaches interested in helping you be more present, compassionate and at ease with yourself.
Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies
These therapeutic approaches blend traditional CBT principles with concepts such as mindfulness, acceptance, compassion, metacognition and the therapeutic relationship. Third-wave CBTs emphasise openness, awareness, compassion and action — helping you be more present and at ease with yourself, others and the world.
Types of third-wave therapies include dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT), schema therapy (ST), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), mindfulness-based cognitive behavioural treatment (MBCT) and compassion-focused therapy (CFT). These treatments are associated with adaptive self-regulation and sustained motivation across a number of health domains, including depression and anxiety.
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
A treatment programme developed to help people who suffer recurrent depression and to prevent relapse. Based on Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme, research shows MBSR is beneficial for patients with chronic pain, hypertension, heart disease, cancer and gastrointestinal disorders, as well as anxiety and panic.
MBCT involves practising mindfulness techniques to help you understand the patterns of your mind. It's not about clearing the mind, but becoming aware of habitual patterns. Practising these skills allows you to see how certain patterns of thinking lead to escalation of emotions, giving you the courage to face distressing moods, thoughts and sensations without fighting them — transforming how you relate to unpleasant experiences.
Relational & Neurobiological Approaches
Drawing on current research in the treatment of trauma, this approach integrates Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Internal Family Systems, mindfulness-based approaches and clinical hypnosis.
It helps clients develop meta-awareness to communicate painful feeling states and understand how their body responds to trauma. Rather than focusing on desensitising event memories, the approach prioritises transformation and repair of trauma-related states through cultivation of new experiences, learning mindfulness skills, new habits of observation and discovery, and increasing the client's capacity to regulate their nervous system.