My background

After graduating in the mid-90's with a BA Honours degree in English and Psychology, I decided to train for a career in Human Resource Management. It was the "people" element of this work which attracted me, so I went straight on to complete a Postgraduate Diploma in HRM.

Working in HR management, I came to learn that the business side of it wasn't for me.  However, part of my job brought me into contact with others experiencing difficulties in their lives, and at these times I was amazed by the power of giving people careful attention and space to be heard.  I wanted to learn more, and decided to leave HR to train as a counsellor.

Completing my training and working as a professional counsellor have been hugely rewarding.  I believe that participating in counselling can be a crucial part of the process of unlocking our own potential and achieving the changes we want for ourselves.

How I work

Work with every client will be unique.  How I begin is by trying to understand where you feel you are now, and where you want to go.  If you don't know these things, we can work on figuring them out together.  I want you to feel able to express yourself as you need to in our sessions, and will do my best to help you do that.

My qualifications and professional membership

I have a Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling from the University of Strathclyde, and have worked with clients in a variety of settings, including GP practice and within an organisation providing support for female survivors of abuse.  I am an accredited Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and am bound by its ethical framework.  I am also a member of Person-Centred Therapy (PCT) Scotland.

Other training and interests

I have completed the 60 hour foundation course in bereavement counselling run by CRUSE Bereavement Care Scotland (2004/5).

I have also attended training in the following areas:

Introduction to Art Therapy certificate course (2005/6) (at Glasgow University's DACE unit).

Authentic Movement and Therapeutic Presence. (2005/6)

Being An Only Child. (2006)  

Working with Clients Who Self-Harm. (2006)

Introduction to Body Psychotherapy. (2008)

Emotion-Focused Therapy Level 1 (2008)

Facing Death & Dying (2009)

Men, Masculinity & Psychotherapy (2010)

I am interested in the variety of ways in which we can and do seek to express ourselves as human beings, and my explorations of movement and art as vehicles for self-expression reflect this.  I am open to clients expressing themselves using either of these media during our counselling sessions, although a client wishing to use either movement or visual images as their primary mode of expression may be better served by seeking a specifically-qualified art or movement therapist.

(Updated 22/05/10)