About me

I got into counselling because I was looking for something more fulfilling in life and after working with adolescents and going through my own personal therapy I thought I had found a way that I could really help people.

Initially I wanted to specialise in helping adolescents due to my experience in the foster system however as my knowledge developed I found myself working more and more with domestic abuse.

I now love my career, helping people rediscover who they are. Whether they are adults dealing with previous experiences or adolescents just setting out in life for the first time. I feel privileged being able to travel alongside my clients on their often amazing journeys.

Domestic abuse specialism

Domestic abuse has a lot of historical stigmas associated with it and it comes in many forms. It is traditionally associated with physical abuse primarily to women however, this is only one type of abuse.
I have worked with many clients that have suffered from psychological and emotional abuse both as adults and in their childhood which fundamentally effect their day to day lives now. Clients often ask, why am I like this? why do I do these things?
There are often complex feelings involved in domestic abuse with a combination of love and anger which can be inexplicably intertwined, other people just don't understand you and it can lead to huge amounts of frustration.

Men in particular can find it difficult to get help. I have worked with many men who not only have to deal with the social stigmas associated with domestic abuse, which limit who they feel comfortable talking to, but also a legal and social system that seems biased against them.

Domestic abuse is a tough subject and can be completely debilitating often leading to people loosing their whole identity. Helping people regain who they are is one of the reasons I chose this specialisation.

Adolescent mental health specialism

I have almost a decade of experience working 1:1 with young people. Primarily those from disadvantaged backgrounds or who have a form of neurodiversity such as ASD and ADHD. This has given me a unique perspective into their personal perceptual world, the problems they are dealing with and an understanding of why they may seem to disagree with what society thinks is best for them.

As with any counselling I cant promise to wave a magic wand and fix everything but I do know how to relate to young people and have had a lot of experience helping them navigate and understand this turbulent time in their lives while also trying to figure out who they are.

Often you can feel it is difficult or even impossible to help your own children, no matter how much you try. This isn't your fault though, this has more to do with societal and evolutionary restrictions that are applied to us without our knowledge.
I offer young people a safe place they can come and talk without judgement or incrimination. To talk about things they find difficult to talk about with anyone within their existing world.

We often work on developing core values and goals for the future, their perceived limitations and what they can do to achieve happiness. I also offer a comfortable safe non judgmental place for them to explore things that they feel they are otherwise unable to.

Areas of counselling

My specialist training in domestic abuse and experience of working with young people have provided me with the knowledge of a large array of different mental health problems, including but not limited to:

Anger
Anxiety
Childhood abuse
Depression / low mood
Domestic abuse such as coercive control and gaslighting
Family issues
Financial, emotional, and psychological abuse
Grief & loss
Low confidence / self-esteem
Male experience of domestic abuse
Neurodiversity
Personal development
Relationship issues
Stress / work-related stress
Self-harm
Suicidal thoughts
Unhelpful thoughts / patterns of behaviour

Voluntary work

Voluntary work is very important to me and a large part of my practice. I find voluntary work very different to my private practice but also immensely rewarding.

I currently volunteer at two organisations Salford University Domestic Violence Counselling Service a domestic abuse service in Manchester and Just Drop In a children's charity in east Cheshire.

Salford University Domestic Violence Counselling Service

Offering up to 20 sessions, free of charge, they accept self referrals from anyone. I believe it is one of the largest free domestic abuse counselling services in the UK and as far as I know it is the only one, of its size, that accepts people of any gender. Something, I am sorry to say, is very limited in this field with many charities and organisations being exclusively for women.
Offering clients 20 sessions is also a luxury in this sector but provides the space and time to explore a topic that can be painful and complex. Unfortunately due this the waiting list can be quite long.

Just Drop In

This is an amazingly professional and well organised charity operating out of east Cheshire. They offer a wide range of different services for children, young people and their families.
Young people can self refer and receive up to 10 free counselling sessions.

Volunteering with this charity allows me to follow my passion for helping young people that want help with the challenges of adolescence. While also regularly connecting with other professionals that are truly passionate about this sector and making a difference in young peoples lives.