Philosophy

Most of the time, we get along with the act of living just fine – but living a satisfying life can be a monumental task, and every now and again it's smart to seek some support and guidance. Like an annual appraisal at work or a physical health check, therapy can be a powerful tool to help assess our progress, evaluate our effectiveness, and promote healthy development. It is our right to live satisfying, self-directed lives.

Therapy should be an empowering, life-enhancing process that identifies individual strengths and uses them as catalysts for growth in other areas. It should do so in such a way that enables you to go out into the world and continue the process yourself.

Approach

My approach is to respect the 'expert status' of the people I work with; you are the person who best knows ‘you’. My task is to know you from another, objective perspective and to draw to your attention qualities, patterns or behaviours you might have missed or avoided. We then work together on addressing those in a way that enables you to live the fulfilling, authentic life that you choose. It's difficult to pinpoint a particular working style, as I endeavour to engage with what is unique about each person I work with.

Saying that, my personal approach to life, and therefore therapy, is one that is optimistic, forward moving and focused on refining the art of happiness. Pain is inevitable but suffering is unnecessary. 

This philosophy underpins my working style, into which I integrate the best of psychological science – cognitive approaches to thinking styles and decision making, psychodynamic theories of personality development and change, and the strong scientific support for practices such as mindfulness and self-observation.

Motivation

I am motivated by the incredible experience of seeing someone grow and begin to truly own and enjoy their life. To be a part of that is a great privilege and I've found my own life expands in proportion to my clients' personal development. For me that's the ultimate win-win.