About Me
My name is Lucy and I am a qualified psychotherapist with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.
I can help you with stress and anxiety, depression, family conflicts, loneliness, self-esteem, anger, grief and loss, healing from trauma and abuse, relationship issues, emotional regulation (and helping children to regulate their emotions), gender and identity, attachment ruptures, and many other personal challenges. Whether you wish for simply a listening ear and someone to offload to, or a more directive approach such as setting goals and developing new coping skills, we will make a plan together so you can get the most out of your therapy. I am a big fan of regular check-ins to make sure your experience is meeting your needs. Above all, I wish to create a positive and trusting environment in therapy, so you can feel safe exploring your innermost thoughts and challenges.
Choosing a therapist can be tricky, which is why I offer a FREE no-obligation 45-minute consultation where we can get to know one another and I can answer any questions you have. Click here to get in touch and book your initial session.
Professional Background
I have been a registered member of the BACP since 2020 and have a wealth of professional experience supporting adults, children and young people. I have worked as a counsellor in schools and universities; for a charity caring for life-limited individuals and their families; a suicide prevention organization; a bereavement group; and in private practice where I support adults and young people with a range of personal challenges. I trained as an Integrative Arts Counsellor at the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education in London, and have since become a registered SandStory® Therapist (see below) as well as expanding my expertise in several specialized areas including ADHD and autism, eating disorders, and sexual trauma.
As a member of the BACP I am bound by their codes of ethics and professional conduct and I strive to uphold these in all aspects of my work. I am fully licensed and insured and registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) as someone responsible for handling clients' personal data.
Approach to Therapy
I work in a person-centred way, so my approach will depend on the issues you bring to therapy. Being an integrative therapist means I draw upon different theories and ways of working that include somatic techniques (working with the body); psychodynamic (making connections between the past and how you are now); and cognitive interventions that focus on changing your patterns of behaviour and thought. I am also a registered SandStory® Therapist (see below), offering a unique and sought-after therapeutic approach that centres around bringing the unconscious into the conscious to explore.
For me, therapy is a collaboration between the two of us, and so I am always receptive to feedback and I welcome exploration of ideas you may have, books you have read....anything that takes us further down the road together!
When I am not working you can usually find me in, or near, the sea. The name 'Sands of Change' reflects my passion for nature and its healing power whenever we are not quite ourselves. Just like the natural world, we are ever-changing and we experience the growth and hibernation of seasons in the same way. I believe therapy is most beneficial when the things we naturally need to thrive are being nurtured: sleep, movement, nutrition, sunlight, and human connection.
Our minds and bodies are so intrinsically linked that I don't believe it is possible to address one without incorporating the other. For this reason I will often begin and end sessions with a physical 'grounding' that brings awareness to our sensations and the clues our body is giving us about how we are feeling as we sit together in the room.
SandStory®
Registered SandStory® Therapist
For those clients seeking a creative exploration of their inner world, I offer a unique and hard-to-find therapeutic approach known as SandStory®. This involves the use of a sand tray and small objects or 'symbols' that are placed in the sand and explored by the client and therapist in a gentle, non-interpretive way.
SandStory® is a very powerful approach that can uncover feelings and memories buried deep in the unconscious. It is also a highly enjoyable therapeutic experience that can be used to support more traditional 'talking therapy'.
