About me
I retrained because I wanted to help myself, and help others. I know what it’s like when symptoms are real, but the fear response has taken over: bracing, monitoring, avoiding, and losing trust in the body. Everything seems amplified, and the tiniest thing, even just a word, can cause spiralling.
Now I help people recover and suffer less, with practical psychological tools grounded in neuroscience.
If you are curious about my approach, and wsih to talk about what’s going on for you, please feel free to book a discovery call.
A very early seed
Many years ago I met a concert pianist who often had to fly between countries with no access to a piano. He described mentally rehearsing his pieces on planes and in hotel rooms so that when he eventually sat at a real piano, the performance was all there. My mind was blown, but it wasn’t until years later, when I retrained and started working with visualisation in therapy, that the memory came flooding back. It all tied together. When you have intention and imagination, so much is possible. The pianist wasn’t just daydreaming, he was actively training his brain. And that’s what we do in this work.
Why I do this work
I came to this work through my own experience of how deeply the mind and body affect each other.
I went through an injury and a long period of pain. Physically, there were real symptoms, but, without psychological support, my mind spiralled. I catastrophised, avoided things that did not need avoiding, and lived in a state of constant distress. I eventually sought therapy just to cope with daily life.
Alongside this, I lived with abdominal pain for many years and was diagnosed with endometriosis and IBS. There were times the symptoms felt relentless. For thirty years I tried a myriad of diets, had repeated tests, and still felt stuck. Not being heard, being dismissed when you are already struggling, compounds the suffering in ways that are hard to describe.
Over time, and as science has developed, I started to understand something important. Stress does not just sit in the mind, but actually changes how the brain and body communicate.
The nervous system can become sensitised which results in attention narrowing and threat monitoring. Symptoms can start to feel expected and familiar. And once the brain expects something, it can become quicker to predict it, notice it, and amplify it.
Eventually, I realised I had to help myself. I began to study how this works, and what actually changes it. The care I received focused mainly on scans, tests, and medication, but not on how I was coping, what I believed was happening, or the fear loop that was forming around it.
I learned there were tools and simple truths that created profound shifts. Over time, as I studied and applied these principles, my symptoms resolved. I am no longer living with daily pain, and flare ups are rare.
My father’s experience after major surgery reinforced this understanding too, though it happened before I had this knowledge so I couldn’t help him at the time.
After a post operative incident he became fixated on a perceived lump in his and stopped eating, so underwent more tests and investigations — all negative. Only years later, once I understood more about health anxiety and threat based attention, did I recognise the emotional toll.
These experiences left me with a clear conviction — it is crucial to have psychological tools of your own. And to also advocate for yourself and be an active participant in recovery and healing.
Retraining as a Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapist was my way of turning that conviction into something practical.
Who I work with
I work with people who feel overwhelmed in their bodies and want practical support to feel calmer, clearer, and more in control.
This includes people navigating pain, injury recovery, fear of movement, medical procedures, as well as athletes rebuilding confidence to return to training and competition.
Meta-cognitive work, defusion and a variety of techniques can help the body settle, but mental rehearsal is also a key technique. When you vividly imagine — embody — a situation or movement, the brain responds as if it is real. And we use this in a targeted way — preparing for surgery — returning to sport after injury — or learning to stay steadier during challenging sensations.
It connects back to that early seed of the concert pianist rehearsing without a piano.
If you want practical tools, clear explanations, and structured, compassionate support, you are in the right place.
What you can expect from me
- A calm, non judgemental, safe space
- Clear explanations of how anxiety, pain, and avoidance work
- Practical skills to practise between sessions, because repetition is how the brain learns
- Respect for your medical and rehab team’s expertise
- Honesty about what I can and cannot offer
The nuts and bolts
My core qualification:
- Higher Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapy, (HypnoCBT), UK College of Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy, London
- Level 5 qualification, externally awarded by NCFE
- Training route approved by the British Psychological Society for CPD
Professional memberships
- Registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register, GHR
- Member of The British Pain Society
- Fully insured through Balens Insurance Ltd
Current CPD
I am committed to ongoing learning and regularly update my skills. Recent and current CPD includes further training in
- I-CBT – deeper work on anxiety, avoidance, and behaviour change
- Insomnia and sleep difficulties
- Sports related hypnosis and the psychology of sports injury
- Stress and resilience management
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, ACT
These sit alongside regular supervision and ongoing clinical reading.
Research interests:
- Psychology of sports injury, surgery, and rehabilitation
- Contemplative practices such as mindfulness and Stoic philosophy (the forerunner to CBT)
- Modern neuroscience and predictive processing
- Habit formation and behaviour change
These interests shape the way I explain things in sessions, using clear everyday language with, I hope, just enough science to help it make sense.
Ethics and qualifications
I work within professional codes of practice, with informed consent, confidentiality, safeguarding, and UK GDPR as standard. Please see all legals at the foot of this page.
Please email if you’d like the full Code of Ethics.