You may be seeking a talking therapy right now and wondering if arts therapy is for you. Let me reassure you that arts therapy is for everyone; you do not have to have artistic talent or any previous experience of using art materials whatsoever. 

 

I am passionate about mental health and the role of the arts to individual well-being and the wider community. I work in a trauma-informed way using humanistic, psychoanalytical and psychodynamic theories. 

 

As a trainee Integrative Arts Psychotherapist, I have worked with clients for two years, including a year with the NHS within a community mental health team. I am a member of BAAT (British Association of Arts Therapists) and a Trainee Member of UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy). 

 

 

Our 50-minute, one-to-one sessions will be a held in a safe, non-judgemental space where you will have the opportunity to share any challenges you may be facing and where, together, we can seek to understand what you are experiencing. 

 

The arts can be used to help us explore certain issues in more detail, particularly where there might not be the words available to describe them or where it feels too difficult to discuss them out loud. This exploration might involve creating an image using paint or a sand tray; choosing from a collection of ready-made picture cards; or even describing a vivid and memorable dream. 

 

There will be a variety of materials available to use in the room but it will be your choice as to what you use (or don't use) during our sessions. There may be sessions where we don't use art at all, but having the opportunity to use the arts can be a rich and enhancing experience in therapy. 

 

My role is to help clients find a way to express themselves and give voice to complex emotions in a way that feels most beneficial to their individual needs and experiences. My methods are integrative, person-centred, flexible and inclusive. 

 

I work with an intersectional lens, considering how intersections of class, race, sexuality, neuro-differences and cultural identities can influence our work together. I believe that the work is a collaboration, and by using curiosity and imagination, I would seek to encourage self-compassion and understanding. 

 

The basis of my practice has its roots in theoretical approaches to psychotherapy developed over more than 100 years through to modern-day neuroscience. This includes theory such as Object Relations, Gestalt, Attachment Theory, Existentialism, Person-Centred, body psychotherapy, and Transactional Analysis.