EASE OF MIND THERAPY
I take an integrated approach to client’s difficulties using my knowledge of the different treatment modalities I have trained in. You don’t use a hammer when you need a screwdriver, so we have to discover together which approach will work best for you. I am gentle, patient and methodical.
 
EASE OF MIND THERAPY
I take an integrated approach to client’s difficulties using my knowledge of the different treatment modalities I have trained in. You don’t use a hammer when you need a screwdriver, so we have to discover together which approach will work best for you. I am gentle, patient and methodical.
1EMDR

EMDR enables us to process experiences that have been overwhelming and distressing and therefore traumatic. To achieve ‘natural recovery’ from traumatic events we talk, think and dream about the experience until it is placed in context and fully integrated by the brain.

However some experiences can be so frightening and upsetting that our brains aren’t able to integrate what we have been through. It’s a bit like a filing cabinet which has gotten very disorganised, with files missing or in the wrong place. In life you may find that you can be very sensitive and reactive to certain situations/people/places (triggers) and find it difficult to manage how you are feeling.

If we were to use EMDR I would ask you to identify an image that represents the worst part of your trauma, the negative belief you have about yourself as you think about this image and where you feel it in their body. We then use bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping alternate sides of the body) whilst you tell me what you are noticing i.e. memories, thoughts, emotions, body sensations or colours, shapes or words. This enables the brain to desensitise and reprocess the experience/s at a deep and emotional level so that we have a fully functioning filing cabinet once again. In life we no longer get triggered as we once were and feel much more balanced and confident in who we are.

2DBR

DBR is very similar to EMDR in that it enables processing of trauma but has a particular focus on attachment shock. The pioneer of this approach, Frank Corrigan, has studied the brain extensively whilst developing this therapy. He has examined the parts of the brain involved in processing trauma and how they link to the rest of our bodies, discovering that trauma is stored in our face, head and neck.

Using this approach I would orient you into the present moment by asking you to close your eyes and ground into your body and surroundings, then go deeper into your body. From this deep place within the body I invite you to bring to mind an aspect of your trauma that we have previously agreed to target.

The therapy involves tuning into the tension that surfaces in the face, head and neck whilst talking through what you are noticing i.e. memories, thoughts, emotions, body sensations or colours, shapes or words. Over time the tension starts to release, the emotions start to change and you reach an alternative perspective where you see your experiences, but mostly importantly yourself, in a more adaptive light.

3CBT

CBT is an extensively researched and evidence-based therapy that is recommended by NICE, WHO and is the main form of therapy offered within the NHS for mental health difficulties.

Using this approach I will help you:

  • Gain a deeper insight into how your life experiences have shaped the fears you have about yourself, others and the world, e.g. “There’s something wrong with me”, “Others hurt you” and “Things always go wrong for me”.
  • Understand the defensive strategies you developed to keep yourself safe e.g. avoidance, and the unintended consequences of these strategies e.g. loneliness, depression and anxiety.
  • Map out an idiosyncratic ‘formulation’ which summarises the above two points into to an easy to understand format, providing a map for therapy so that we know what approach will be best suited to help you with your difficulties.
  • Choose an intervention such as a diagnosis specific treatment protocol, like Exposure Response Prevention (ERP) for OCD. Or take a more standardised approach, for example, learning to relate to your thoughts differently with cognitive restructuring, and/or making changes to your safety/defensive strategies by engaging in behavioural experiments e.g. learning to tolerate uncertainty by not seeking reassurance.
4Third Wave CBT

I am passionate about ‘third wave’ approaches, such as Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). These approaches are transdiagnostic, which means they are appropriate for varying presenting issues.

Using these approaches I will help you:

  • Understand the different emotional regulation systems we have evolved with and teach you how to strengthen your ‘soothing’ system, which will enable you to manage your emotions more effectively.
  • Be more present and spend less time ruminating about the past, or worrying about the future.
  • Change your relationship to your thoughts and feelings by creating more space for them, learning to observe them and understanding ‘thoughts are not necessarily facts’.
  • Learn to approach difficulties and explore how they feel in the body, rather than avoiding or pushing them away.
  • Understand how the brain has evolved, how this can cause us distress and tune into the qualities of compassion (strength, wisdom, care and commitment) in order to regulate your emotions.
  • Identify values in key areas of your life and make action plans of how to live more closely by them.
SESSIONS & FEES