My life’s Purpose

About Me

My journey into therapy

​I was born in the late 70’s to parents, a generation and culture that didn’t really like to acknowledge their own problems, let alone talk about them! Four decades later and I am deeply thankful that things have changed.

somerset counsellor

My heartfelt invitation to you is to join me in doing your own work. You will, with help, and if you can persevere, find the same freedom and robust mental health I have gained.

I found my way to the therapeutic world in the early 2000’s, searching for answers that my parents and the British culture at large were thus far, still unable to give me. I dedicated two decades to a journey of intense personal growth and healing. At first the work felt daunting and embarrassing but it was ultimately a highly rewarding venture.

​I have now become a rather accepting and hardworking alchemist, reaping the rewards of the fruits of my labour! It is from this personal experience that I have, over the years, developed my approach to counselling and guiding others.

In my experience, avoiding problems does not mean we escape them. We can hope, by not looking, that they will somehow disappear. Unfortunately they do not. They fester and grow in the dark or change shape and boil over, often destroying our lives in various ways to various degrees.

I believe in the great power and importance of intimate relationships, with oneself, ones nearest and dearest and with the natural world. With these things truly in place, we are at home in our own existence and with all the challenges WE ARE PRESENTED WITH.

My personal life

I have chosen to live a deeply fulfilling life here in Axbridge in the quiet Somerset hills. I was badly wounded following a traumatic childhood but I am driven by a desire to create the opposite of what I had been shown by parents who were unable to take care of themselves or those around them. I am highly motivated to create sanity and fulfilment in all aspects of my life. I have found that working to overcome all obstacles to achieve this has proven to be the best remedy for the psychic unrest that occurs when one fails to aim up and out towards their potential.

I am an extremely fulfilled married woman and I am a devoted wife to Russell, my husband. He is a deeply intelligent, strong, and caring man and our dynamic and successful marriage is our greatest achievement.

We both weathered the storm of our childhoods and the fallout battered our relationship and threatened to break us apart. We overcame all the hurdles we faced as individuals and as a couple and set a course for the safe harbour where we now reside.

This still place has become fertile ground for developing other areas of our lives including health, education, work, and creativity. We have a beautiful son Charlie who teaches us who we are, challenges us to do better and continues to improve our lives every day with his great energy, good humour, sobering honesty and with his beautiful, god given gifts and intuitions. We love our pretty little home here in Axbridge, Somerset, nestled at the foot of The Mendip Hills, with our knock off Siamese Luna and our big red Labrador Goose.

counselling-in-somerset

We spend a vast proportion of our lives immersed in nature, which I have found to be the greatest of healers. I love hiking, riding, open water swimming, any kind of sporting event and I am over 16,000 miles into my journey to complete the equivalent of the earths circumference on my trusted road bike Olivia.

I don’t believe in medicating away the human condition, so I don’t drink, smoke or take prescription medication. I’ve not been seduced by the entertainment industry or tech companies and I choose to live life in the real world where I feel most alive and in tune with myself as a human being.

I have done and continue to do the psychological work required of us all if we are to succeed in becoming who we are capable of becoming. I faced the shadowy parts of myself that threatened to keep me stuck in my head with my fears and my shame. I overcame limiting beliefs and maladaptive behaviours and emerged victorious, the hero of my own story. It’s a beautiful world, I see it and I feel it. I feel lucky to be here on this beautiful planet, in this vast universe and to somehow feel like a valuable part of it.

Experience

  • Support Worker – Women’s Refuge
  • Support Worker – Turning Point
  • Support Worker – Addaction
  • Training, Recreation, Education, Employment and Support Worker – Addiction Recovery Agency
  • Trainee Counsellor for the Day Programme – Addiction Recovery Agency
  • Trainee Student Counsellor – Weston College

Qualifications

  • I have a diploma in counselling from The University of the West of England where I qualified as a counsellor in 2011. This was a BACP accredited course.
  • I use supervision and continued professional development to ensure I am working ethically and effectively.
  • I hold an up to date first aid certificate and am a qualified ride leader for British Cycling.
  • I am fully insured both as a counsellor and as a ride leader.