“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
-James Baldwin-

Why I Think Therapy is Good for Us

I think that therapy is one of the most powerful things we can do for ourselves. To have a space that is just for us—to say what we need to say, to hear ourselves think, to be understood without judgment—can change how we move through the world. When we feel truly heard, we begin to understand ourselves in a new way. We notice the patterns we’ve been stuck in, the expectations we’ve been carrying, and the possibilities that exist for us. I believe therapy works because it gives us permission to be honest, to be seen, and to figure out what we actually want from life.

I don’t believe that therapy is about fixing people because I don’t believe that people are broken. I think we are shaped by our experiences, by the messages we’ve been given, by the ways we’ve had to survive. And when we begin to make sense of those things, we create the opportunity to move forward in a way that feels more like ours.

What Led to Me Becoming a Therapist

My journey into therapy wasn’t a straight line. Before becoming a therapist, I spent a decade in the charity sector, working with people who had experience of the care system, supporting them to tell their stories to politicians, journalists, and public servants. I saw how powerful it was when people felt heard—how much could shift when someone felt that their voice mattered.

This commitment to listening came from my own experiences. Growing up, I understood what it meant to feel unseen. I went to school at a time when Section 28 banned teachers from ‘promoting homosexuality,’ which meant that even acknowledging the existence of same-sex relationships was forbidden. At home, my mum worked three insecure jobs to keep us afloat, and I understood from an early age that the systems around us weren’t built with people like us in mind. I also have experience, now and throughout my life, in getting things wrong and then facing myself. That shit is hard.

These experiences shaped how I see the world. They made me committed to creating spaces where people feel safe enough to be honest, where they don’t have to perform or prove themselves, where they don’t have to carry shame that was never theirs to begin with.

Why I Practice in a Person-Centred Way

The best way I can describe the way I think therapy works best is through a metaphor: you’re driving the car, and I’m working to be the best travel companion I can be. I’ve taken the car to be valeted before the journey, I’ve packed the best snacks, and I’ve made a playlist full of the biggest bops. I’m here to help make the journey as comfortable as possible, but I don’t have any expectations about the destination, the speed, or the route we take to get there. If it gets dark, we’ll put the lights on together. If we get lost, we’ll be lost together.

I practice in a person-centred way because I believe that you know yourself better than anyone else. I’m not here to give advice or to tell you what to do. I’m here to help you hear yourself more clearly, to support you as you untangle the things that feel confusing, and to remind you that you’re allowed to take up space.

Therapy isn’t about me having the answers—it’s about creating the conditions for you to find your own.