Thrive beyond trauma - my approach to therapy
The wound is the place where the Light enters you.” – Rumi
There is a unique, incredibly alive, whole and authentic quality at the centre of each one of us. Being in contact with this ‘Self’ is vital to health, joy and meaning in life. Traumatic, stressful or overwhelming life experiences, especially when these happen during early childhood or adolescence, Often disconnect us from the ‘Self’. For many, access to the ‘Self’ is thwarted, obstructed and can even be completely blocked.
Sometimes there is the feeling that such a Self doesn’t exist. This disconnect from Self can lead to a wide variety of distressing symptoms, including
Depression
Anxiety
Terror including nightmares
Phobias
Intrusive Thoughts and Flashbacks
Obsessive Compulsive traits
Feelings of loneliness and isolation
Lack of purpose and meaning
Numbness
Boredom
A sense of inner emptiness
Lack of confidence
Being overly self-critical or self-rejecting
Feelings of confusion or disorientation
Grief and a sense of loss
And many others
People may try to escape from these unbearable states and may use alcohol, recreational drugs or engage in other forms of addiction, even workaholism. This creates additional problems, affecting healthy functioning in life, potentially leading to an ever greater downward spiral.
When we make the decision to embark on a therapeutic journey of recovery and healing from our dysfunctional life patterns and traumatic wounding, it can lead us into the search of who we really are. We can start to become more authentic and true to our Self. I believe that it is the role of a humanistic integrative psychotherapist to explore ever new ways of assisting a person on this journey.
“If you love love, look for your self” – Rumi
I was drawn to this path in 2004. During a time a time of ill health, I experienced my first personal therapy. When I had my initial therapy session, it felt like a window had been opened and a breath of fresh air entered my life. I knew then that this was my path. My intense and long training with the Bath Centre for Psychotherapy and Counselling (bcpc) allowed me to study a variety of approaches, out of which my own way of working emerged. Since then my work has drawn on person-centred and psychodynamic approaches, Gestalt therapy, Jungian concepts, body-centred approaches such as Comprehensive Resource Model (CRM) and Mindfulness and very significantly my work at the Oxford Development Centre.
My approach is to work within a relationship of trust, presence, non-judgemental dialogue and confidentiality. My client and their experiences are the centre of my practice, based on empathy and conscious attunement. I tailor each session to match my clients’ individual needs and their unique experiences, ensuring that all therapeutic work takes place within their window of tolerance, in order to reduce the risk of re-traumatisation and dissociation in therapy. For some clients, especially if they have experienced complex trauma the therapeutic journey can take time as it is of utmost importance to work always within what feels possible and safe to a client at any given point in time and to strengthen, empower and resource each client as much as possible.
It is my experience, however, that within a trusted and holding therapeutic relationship previous attachment-based trauma can be re-patterned, survival-based fear structures can be transformed and new healthier ways of being can be experienced and embedded in life. This leads to a reduction in distressing symptoms, an increase in self-regulation and overall improvement in health, functioning and well-being.
As a therapist I see myself as a facilitator of each of my clients’ unique healing journey. I believe it is therefore of vital importance that I have also undergone my own therapeutic work and travelled on this journey.
I have worked both in Academia and large organisations and am familiar with the issues and pressures that can arise in these settings. I speak both English and German and have a basic knowledge of French.
