I understand what it is to be capable, responsible and still find something hard to shift

Before becoming a psychotherapist and clinical hypnotherapist, I spent more than 25 years working in professional environments, largely in marketing and communications.

I understand the reality of busy lives, responsibility, deadlines, competing demands and having to keep functioning even when something feels difficult underneath.

Many of the people I work with are capable people. They manage work, relationships, families and responsibilities. From the outside, they may appear to be coping well.

But that doesn't mean everything feels easy on the inside.

You might find yourself overthinking, second-guessing, worrying about things you know you can't control, avoiding something that feels uncomfortable or simply feeling less like yourself than you used to.

And sometimes that is particularly frustrating when you're usually someone who can work things out.

You don't need to arrive with everything figured out

You don't need to know exactly why you're feeling the way you are.

You don't need a diagnosis.

And you don't need to have the right words ready.

Part of my role is to listen carefully and help make sense of what is happening for you.

I won't assume that your experience means the same thing as someone else's, or that I already know where a pattern came from.

I'm interested in understanding how things are working for you now. What happens, what you notice, how you respond, what you've already tried and what may be keeping you stuck.

From there, we can work out where something different might become possible.

Why I became a therapist

My move into psychotherapy came from a growing interest in how people think, respond and adapt, particularly when simply understanding a problem doesn't seem to change it.

That led me to formal study in psychology, followed by specialist training in strategic psychotherapy and clinical hypnosis.

What appealed to me was the practicality of the approach.

Rather than assuming that therapy has to involve endlessly revisiting the past, strategic psychotherapy looks closely at how a problem is operating now and where there may be opportunities to respond differently.

Clinical hypnosis adds another way of working, allowing us to rehearse and reinforce different responses in a focused state of attention.

For me, the two approaches fit naturally together.

What I bring to the work

I bring psychological knowledge and clinical training, but I also bring years of experience working with people, navigating pressure, solving problems and communicating clearly.

I tend to work in a way that is thoughtful, practical and collaborative.

I won't tell you what you should feel.

I won't assume that because something looks small from the outside, it feels small to you.

And I won't expect you to become a completely different person.

The aim is to understand what is happening, identify where change is possible and help you develop more choice in how you respond.

Who I work with

I work with adults experiencing:

• anxiety and overthinking

• stress and overwhelm

• confidence and self-esteem difficulties

• avoidance and procrastination

• habits and recurring patterns

• life transitions and career change.

You don't need to fit neatly into one of these categories.

Sometimes people simply know that something isn't working the way they would like it to anymore.

We can start there.

A grounded, practical place to begin

Therapy doesn't need to be another thing you have to get right.

You can come as you are, with whatever is happening.

We'll take the time to understand it and work out what might help you move forward with more calm, clarity and control.