The lives of human beings are fettered by evil karma, earthly desires and the inborn sufferings of life and death. But due to the three inherent potentials of Buddha nature – innate Buddhahood, the wisdom to become aware of it, and the action to manifest it – our lives can without doubt come to reveal the Buddha’s three properties.
~ Nichiren Daishonin
Qualifications & experience
After completing an honours degree in psychology I spent several years working in research and addictions and raising my daughter. I then completed a master’s degree in Educational Psychology. I have had 20 years experience working as an Educational Psychologist for a local authority. During this time I have benefitted from the experiences of working alongside valued colleagues, families and young people and from a range of high quality professional development opportunities. Areas of particular interest and experience for me have included:
- Attachment – the effect our early key relationships have on our emotional development, sense of self and subsequent relationships with others.
- Fostering & Adoption – I have experience working alongside parents, social workers, foster carers and adopters to support the needs of children and adults involved in these processes.
- Trauma – significant traumatic events can impact upon our functioning. These can include not just the ‘big’ events we think of as trauma, such as accidents or acts of physical violence, but also the ‘small’ events such as being shamed or betrayed in ways that can have a deep impact.
- Supporting frontline workers – it is recognised that those who are working with others who are traumatised or in suffering can develop symptoms of secondary trauma themselves.
- Digital Addiction – in more recent years I have developed an interest in the impact of increasing use of technology, gaming & social media on our brain development, social functioning and mental wellbeing.
After 17 years as an educational psychologist I decided it was time to make a change. I wanted to explore more deeply what it means to be human and how we make sense of ourselves and our journey through life. It became important to me to be able to sit more closely alongside those at points of struggling and support them in their journey of understanding. I began a diploma in person centred counselling and it proved to be the most rewarding educational experience I have ever had.I have recently completed an additional qualification in online counselling to ensure that I can provide my clients with a range of options to meet their needs.
My approach
My counselling approach is person centred, which is based on the works of Carl Rogers. Rogers believed that we all have the innate tendency towards ‘self actualisation’ or inner wholeness. Sometimes this gets lost along the way, but when we are held within the right nurturing conditions and treated with empathy, congruence and unconditional positive regard we can re-discover our own inner truths, wisdom and resources. In this, relationship is key.
I have practiced Nichiren Buddhism since 1995. In Buddhism we are taught that our most fundamental self is our Buddhahood, our highest state of being. From accessing this life condition we can manifest our inner wisdom, courage and compassion for ourselves and for others. When I encountered person centred counselling it felt highly compatible with this Buddhist view of life.
In working from a person centred perspective it will always be important to begin with what you want to bring to counselling and what your goals and priorities are, and these may change over time. I may get curious at times about your thinking and gently challenge your perspective. If I have information that I think could be helpful to you I will share this with you. But we will always be joint collaborators in the process.
I am open to exploring the more spiritual aspects to life with people for whom that is important. There will be others for whom that is not a priority.
We human beings can neither see our own eyebrows, which are so close, nor heaven in the distance. Likewise we do not see that the Buddha exists in our own hearts.
~ Nichiren Daishonin