What is Integrative Therapy?

Therapy works best as a shared process. You deserve to understand what's happening—not just experience it. I aim to create a space where you feel safe, informed, and included. Together, we'll explore what’s coming up, why it matters, and how to move forward in a way that feels right for you.

Talking Therapy​

Talking therapy offers a range of benefits by creating a safe, non-judgmental space to explore thoughts and emotions. It helps individuals better understand themselves, manage difficult feelings, and develop healthier ways of coping with stress, anxiety, or low mood.

 

For young people, it can support emotional development and improve confidence and communication skills. Adults often find it helpful for navigating life changes, improving relationships, and gaining clarity during challenging times. Through open and supportive conversation, talking therapy promotes emotional resilience and personal growth.

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​Non-directive Play

Non-directive play gives children (and sometimes adults) the freedom to express themselves using toys, role-play, and storytelling without specific instructions. This type of play fosters creativity, self-direction, and emotional processing in a natural and non-threatening way.

Creative Methods​

Creative therapies—such as painting, drawing, clay, and collage—offer gentle and meaningful ways to explore thoughts and emotions without needing to find the right words. These approaches can help individuals of all ages express themselves more freely, especially when verbal communication feels difficult or overwhelming.

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• Painting allows for emotional expression through colour, brushstroke, and composition. The act of applying paint to canvas or paper can be calming and cathartic, helping individuals externalise inner experiences.

• Drawing provides a simple yet powerful means of exploring thoughts and feelings. It can help uncover unconscious patterns or memories and is often used to track emotional progress over time.

• Clay offers a hands-on, sensory-rich experience that encourages self-discovery and emotional release. The malleable nature of clay allows for the expression of anger, grief, or anxiety through shaping, squeezing, or sculpting.

• Collage involves selecting and arranging images, textures, and words to create a visual narrative. It’s especially helpful for exploring identity, processing trauma, or connecting fragmented thoughts and feelings.

Sandtray  Therapy​

Sandtray therapy is a creative and expressive therapeutic approach that allows clients to explore their inner world using sand, miniature objects, and symbols. Rooted in Jungian and humanistic theories, it offers a safe, contained space where individuals can externalise thoughts and emotions that may be difficult to express with words.

 

By creating scenes or “worlds” in the sandtray, clients can process experiences, gain insight, and move toward healing. The therapist observes and holds the space with sensitivity, allowing the symbolic process to unfold at the client’s own pace. This gentle, non-directive method can be especially effective for children, but is also powerful for adolescents and adults

Metaphor & Imagery

​Using metaphor and imagery in therapy is like holding up a mirror that reflects your inner world in a new light. These tools turn complex thoughts and emotions into something more familiar—like comparing anxiety to a stormy sea or healing to planting seeds.

 

This kind of language helps make feelings easier to understand and talk about. It creates distance from overwhelming emotions, making them feel more manageable, while also opening up creative ways to explore your story.

 

For many, imagery can express what words alone cannot, offering a bridge between what’s felt and what’s said.

Eye Movement Desensitiation Reprocessing​

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) can be drawn on. This is a powerful and evidence-based form of psychotherapy. It’s particularly effective for adults, young people, and children who have experienced trauma or distressing events.

 

Recommended by NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) for treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), EMDR helps the brain process difficult memories in a safe and structured way.

 

Using gentle techniques like guided eye movements, tapping, or sound, EMDR can reduce the emotional intensity of painful memories, helping you move forward with greater ease.

Transactional Analysis​

Transactional Analysis (TA) is a powerful psychological framework that I integrate into my therapeutic practice to help clients gain deeper self-awareness and improve their relationships. Rooted in the work of Dr. Eric Berne, TA explores the dynamics between our internal Parent, Adult, and Child ego states, providing insight into how

 

past experiences shape current patterns of behavior and communication. By identifying and understanding these patterns, clients can break free from unhelpful cycles, foster healthier interactions, and make more conscious, empowered choices in their lives. TA is particularly effective in addressing issues such as self-esteem, conflict resolution, and emotional regulation, making it a valuable component of an integrative approach to therapy.

Polyvagal Theory

Polyvagal theory offers a powerful lens through which integrative therapists can support clients in understanding and regulating their nervous systems.

 

By drawing on this approach, therapy becomes a space where clients can safely explore how their physiological responses—rooted in the autonomic nervous system—shape their emotional experiences, behaviours, and relationships. Integrating polyvagal-informed practices allows the therapist to help clients recognise when they are in states of safety, fight/flight, or shutdown, and to gently guide them toward greater nervous system regulation and resilience.

 

This approach enhances therapeutic outcomes by fostering a deeper sense of connection, self-awareness, and embodied healing.

Walk & Talk Therapy (Nature Therapy) ​

​Walk and Talk Therapy is a dynamic, embodied approach that I offer as part of my integrative practice, blending the benefits of physical movement with the therapeutic process. Stepping outside the traditional therapy room, sessions take place outdoors—often in nature—which can help ease anxiety, stimulate creativity, and support a deeper sense of connection to oneself and the environment.

 

Walking side by side often allows for a more relaxed, open dialogue, especially for those who may find sitting face-to-face challenging. This approach can be particularly effective for working through stuck emotions, gaining new perspectives, and grounding insights through the rhythm of movement. Walk and Talk Therapy invites a holistic mind-body experience, aligning with my commitment to creative and client-centered healing.