My Approach

I have always been fascinated by the origins of words, and the meanings that they carry.

When I first started my training as a therapist I learnt that the term psychotherapy is derived from Ancient Greek psyche (ψυχή meaning "breath; spirit; soul") and therapeia (θεραπεία "healing; medical treatment").

If we are to put these meanings together, it speaks to psychotherapy as healing or treatment of the vital life force (breath); spirit; or soul.

I truly believe that healing in psychotherapy does not come from me providing expertise, knowledge, or in giving you something that you do not have. Rather, I see healing as a collaborative effort to help you connect to your voice; your path; your spirit; and ultimately, yourself again.

I often think of the work initially as a forgetting of how you have come to see yourself; followed by a remembering of who you truly are.

I think Mary Oliver captures it best in the following excerpt from her poem titled “The Journey”:

“The stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do–
determined to save
the only life you could save.”

–Mary Oliver