I qualified as a General Nurse in 1989; my experience in supporting people includes nursing within GP Surgeries, as a Diabetes Specialist Nurse and supporting the unemployed back to work by offering appropriate counselling and health assistance via therapeutic courses. 

I have been trained in Person-Centred Counselling since 1993, Solution Focused Therapy since 2006 and since 2007 in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). I have a Master of Science degree (MSc.) in CBT. I now specialise in online CBT to provide a professional and confidential counselling service to clients across the Country. I have undertaken a clinical placement as an associate Therapist at Cambridge University, where I provided support to students and staff and have also worked as a volunteer at a rape crisis centre. I have previously been employed as a therapist for the Priory Hospital Group, and have worked as a volunteer for the Aire Valley Counselling and Therapy Service, Keighley, West Yorkshire. I adhere to the standards of conduct, performance and ethics of both the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies. I am fully covered by public liability insurance and I am DBS (previously CRB) checked.

Finding the right Therapist is paramount to achieving a positive outcome. The initial consultation allows the client to discuss briefly what brought them to counselling, what they feel they need from a Therapist and what they would like to achieve from the sessions. It also allows both the client and myself to establish whether we can work together to achieve the desired outcomes. 

I work in an integrative way, using predominantly Cognitive Behavioural Therapy but integrating Person-Centred Counselling and Solution Focused Therapy where it is appropriate to do so. It is important to tailor the approach to the needs of the individual client and this can be done in a seamless fashion. I have worked successfully with clients of all ages from a wide variety of backgrounds covering a wide range of problems including abuse, addiction, depression, social phobia and trauma. It is important for a client and therapist to build a bond of trust and to feel comfortable with each other. I provide warmth with intelligent professionalism to enable my clients to explore, understand and find solutions to their problems. I carefully and sensitively assess the needs of my clients to ensure they make full use of the service and support available. 

I work from home in West Yorkshire and provide a confidential environment for my clients to work in. Working online allows me to provide support to people in need across the Country rather than being limited to a particular locality. My clients tell me that it takes them only a very short while to get used to it and actually prefer not having to travel to appointments. It also means there is no chance of transmitting covid, flu etc and allows clients to have sessions during their holiday if they wish to do so.

Areas of Counselling dealt with include (but not limited to): Abuse, Addiction(s), Alcohol Addiction, Anger Management, Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Manic Depression, Bullying, Child Related Issues, Couples Counselling, Depression, Drug Addiction, Emotional Abuse, Insomnia, Low Self-Confidence, Low Self-Esteem, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Panic Attacks, Physical Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Postnatal Depression, Relationship Issues, Sexuality, Sexual Abuse, Social Phobias, Stress, Trauma. 

If you would like to hear me being interviewed on a local radio station on the issue of insomnia, you can listen here. 

It is important for a Therapist to maintain their own personal development. Brief details of some of the courses I have undertaken can be found here.