Principles and Approach
Key considerations in my work include the therapeutic relationship, human-esteem, the individual, and self-examination/awareness. In addition to being guided by the ethics of the UKCP and BACP, the main principles by which I work as a therapist are:
To become obsolete.
I am passionate about helping people to be able to employ the skills and tools gained in therapy for themselves, without my assistance. I am always working towards client autonomy and holding hope and possibility for it.To value the relationship.
I believe that the therapeutic relationship is the most important part of therapy, and offers the greatest potential for change. It is the bedrock essential for other techniques to stand on. I am mindful to offer congruence, positive regard and empathic understanding to encourage transformative therapeutic change (Rogers (1957).
The therapeutic relationship offers a possibility of experiencing something new, healing the there-and-then in the here and now (Stern, 2004). It can provide hope, a template and proof of what the future could be: It is possible to rupture and repair, to be seen and heard without judgment, to trust and be trusted, to be with another and be safe.
The relationship is not restrained to therapist and client but also includes the world to which we are both intra-connected. I work both explicitly and implicitly with the more-than-human. My relationship with nature as a whole means that I strive to work in ways that is useful rather than harmful, choosing as ecologically beneficial options as possible.
To guide toward greater awareness
At a deeper level, I am moving implicit to explicit, increasing consciousness around patterns. I am always working in the direction of greater embodiment, of association rather than dissociation, of greater presence. This increases choice, empowerment and self-determination.
To create temenos
Temenos is an Ancient Greek work that describes a safe and sacred space in which the True Self can emerge. Rather than make an assumption of what feels safe, based on my assumptions and experience, I work with each individual to create a space that offers this with awareness of individual needs.
I follow the 10 Foundations for Safe Trauma Therapy set out by Babette Rothschild (2011). A sense of safety and stability is key to any therapeutic work, without it we cannot be present or integrated.
To develop a consensual and mutually agreed contract with the client.
I am committed to contracting with clients to promote an ethical relationship. I support people to develop goals that are specific and measurable (Berne, 1972) so that we are clear and committed to the work and can easily assess if we are headed in the right direction.
Both therapist and client are responsible for the therapeutic journey. Unlike consuming a cure or remedy, therapy is a mutual process of experimentation and (serious) play, both must be invested in that experimentation and work for change to happen.
I am also a great believer in parthenogenesis, that everything needed is already within. I encourage clients to develop their “Goldilocks” whereby they are aware of what is just right and what is not so that they can be in the driving seat when choosing ways of working to meet their goal.
Within this, is a conscious rejection of hierarchy and intention towards power equality, valuing client knowledge of self and agency. While I offer containment, suggestions, and recommendations, I am conscious in my intention to offer these in a way that empowers greater choice, working collaboratively and co-operatively, rather than restrictively.
To improve the quality of life of the client.
This includes the old adage “first, do no harm”. The therapeutic relationship and interventions themselves must be safe and not re-traumatizing. Being client-led (Geldard, Geldard and Foo, 2018), treating clients with respect, individualising the therapy and having self-awareness are integral to avoid recreating the power imbalances that may have been enforced in their past (Stauffer, 2021). Developing resources of safety and stabilization before exploring any trauma narratives is imperative (Rothschild, 2017).
To treat clients with respect
Berne (1972) shared his human values that: people are OK; everyone has the capacity to think; people decide their own destiny, and these decisions can be changed. Roberts describes five key ingredients to human-esteem that echo and extend Berne’s I’m Okay, You’re Okay; “I and all people are powerful, capable, lovable, valuable and equal” (Roberts, 1987, pg. 2).
I strongly concur and am enlivened by the journey of helping people recognise, and celebrate, these qualities within themselves.
To stay curious
I enjoy attending workshops and courses, and reading, to gain a wide variety of skills and knowledge. I have attended a wide variety of training and CPD, which can be seen here.
Science, and theory, are continually changing and developing and I am committed to staying up to date with findings, and determining what makes sense to me and my clients. I also believe it is important to have an option of offering a wide variety of interventions and approaches to offer different clients and their differing needs. To do this, my training is also diverse.
To be flexible
I focus on each client’s individual experience and needs. No matter whether clients have similar experiences or challenges, the intervention and approach that suits them may be completely different. I adapt the therapy to suit the client.
To be anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive, and hold awareness of the impact of social constructs and influence.
I feel it is essential to continually reflect on and develop awareness of my own biases. I am open and welcome others’ reflections where they experience ignorance or lack of understanding to their experience and am committed to accountability and self-development.
I feel it is integral to the therapeutic process to hold awareness of the social constructs and cultural norms. I also feel that these are subjective, and whilst I endeavor to continue to educate myself on the generalities of culture and systems, I seek the individual and unique intersectional experience of the person I am working alongside. For example, while I believe it is my responsibility to educate myself on societal systems, cultures, and historical contexts that may (or may not) have impacted a client; I am focused on the client’s individual personal experiences and how much of that they wish to explicitly bring into therapy.
To continue self-examination and exploration
I am passionate about holding an awareness of the wider structures of society, and their impact within therapeutic work. I am committed to being aware of, and continually reflecting on, the lens through which I view clients and how that impacts the therapy.
I strongly believe that we, as therapists, must reflect on our own power, privilege and biases in order to recognise it so that it does not interfere with creating a secure and useful therapeutic relationship.
To look after myself
Burnout, vicarious trauma and counter-transference are prolific in therapists and are detrimental to both therapist and client. I am committed to my own wellbeing and employ a variety of care strategies.
This means that I take regular annual leave every 6-8 weeks as well as a longer 4 week break every year, in addition to training leave, as recommended for practitioners in this field.
To minimise my work-related environmental impact and to apply broader ethical considerations throughout my practise.
This includes using sustainable travel to work where possible and sustainable therapy products, such as minimal plastic, and second-hand therapy resources, such as miniatures. I use Ethical Consumer and Corporate Watch to assist me in making ethical choices regarding suppliers of therapy materials. This also includes using vegan and locally produced items wherever possible.