Counselling/Psychotherapy
My work is informed by the integral model which incorporates aspects of most of the common therapeutic approaches to address the majority of presenting issues. Frequently – and when appropriate – I will incorporate mindfulness practices into the work.
My involvement with a client can range from a few weeks for crisis counselling, to 2-6 months – a typical brief therapy duration, to longer term psychotherapy of a year or more.
My earlier training – mid 80’s to mid 90’s – was all from within the humanistic tradition; I was almost exclusively involved with the person-centred tradition associated with Dr Carl Rogers. The counselling services I set up for HMP Brixton prison were based upon this person-centred model and it was an ideal model for establishing a sense of mutual trust and respect in that challenging environment. Whilst there I trained as a facilitator for the Enhanced thinking Skills, ETS – the flagship home office ‘offender treatment’ group training program. This was rooted in the CBT tradition. From around 2000 the service began to develop in the direction of mindfulness informed psychotherapy with the introduction of the weekly “Mind Body workout group” which was offered to all prisoners on the waiting list.
I have extensive experience in working with adult survivors of abuse, trauma, and with men.
For specific conditions such as anxiety, anger, stress and depression, OCD, I can offer Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT). I have become very involved with the ACT learning community. You’ll see from the button at the side that I offer regular London-based trainings in ACT. This is a (very poorly focussed) video of a song I wrote “Get your motor running” & performed at the ACT World conference in Washington 2012
ACT is a model for psychotherapy which – alongside various ‘fellow travellers’ is represented by the Association for Contextual & Behavioural Science. ACT is beginning to become known as Contextual CBT. I am a charter member of ACBS.
I have engaged in a process of collegial peer review with fellow trainers of ACT and in 2014 I achieved the status of peer-reviewed ACT trainer – the 4’th trainer of now (2017) 8 in the UK.
I am a Senior Practitioner member of the register of Psychologists specialising in Psychotherapy (ROPSIP)
I am registered as a qualified practitioner on the European Psychologists register
I can work in (appropriate) workplace locations or take referrals in the premises from where I run my private practices.