A bit about me..

It all began with dance ..

I taught dance and movement for over 45 years. My earliest dance passion was ballroom dancing. Over the years I have added other disciplines and styles to my training. Early in my career I realised that there were underlying reasons why people came to my classes. In addition to the obvious one of learning a new skill, something else was going on. I found that the relational and expressive aspects of dance were as important to me as the actual steps, if not more so. And there was also something about the way I related to my participants. I saw my role as helping to fulfil their potential, rather than criticising their technique. I wanted to accompany them as they discovered the joy of movement for themselves.

..which turned into therapy!

My classes attracted participants who were finding their way again after bereavement, illness or injury and some came because it helped them manage their challenges with mental health. When I discovered that Movement Psychotherapy was actually a profession, I knew I had found my calling. I studied for a master’s degree, graduating from Canterbury Christ Church University in 2013.

Since I began my psychotherapy training in 2009 I have been involved with charity, community  and public sector organisations. I have worked alongside groups and individuals from all walks of life, of all ages and with varying cognitive and physical abilities. 

In 2012 I began working with clients experiencing the negative symptoms of Schizophrenia, and then continued this work in secure residential settings. Since then I’ve worked in schools, the NHS, local authority, further education and community organisations. I am currently a therapist and trainer with the Arts for the Blues collaboration with Edge Hill and Salford Universities.

And here we are now!

As a therapist with decades of experience in movement and well-being, I have been offering private Psychotherapy and Dance Movement Psychotherapy since 2015, both one to one and group. In private practice I work mostly with bereavement, depression,  anxiety and trauma particularly older adults with longstanding childhood trauma and the difficulties this presents in later life. Since 2019, I have expanded my private practice to working with people online.

My clients include people who are experiencing the affects of bereavement, depression, abuse, addiction and emotional difficulties, as well as conditions such as Dementia, Autism, Schizophrenia and Bi-Polar Disorder.  I also work with clients seeking personal growth self-exploration or self-understanding

My professional experience

I am one of a team of therapists delivering and supporting research projects for Edge Hill University’s Research in Arts and Wellbeing faculty. In this capacity I am currently involved with Arts for Blues – creative arts therapies for anxiety and depression- both as a therapist and as a trainer. Also for Edge Hill, I facilitated Dancing with Health – Dance Movement Psychotherapy for survivors of breast cancer – as well as DMP groups in primary schools. I have also worked with Queen Mary University in London as therapist on the NESS project – body oriented therapy for the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. My community work includes freelancing for Age UK and Cheshire Dance, as well as delivering sessions for Parkinson’s UK, and I am linked to the NHS Social Prescription Services for Nantwich & Rural.

Other organisations I have worked with include Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Greater Manchester West Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and Mersey Care NHS Trust as well as the Centre for Psychiatry, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine at Queen Mary University, London.