Therapies Offered
Kim's Approach
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Kim uses an integrative psychotherapy approach using elements from the range of psychotherapies listed here. In this way a unique approach is developed for each individual.
CBT is a talking therapy that works on the premise that the way you think and behave impacts upon the way you feel. Through CBT, the client first learns to identify unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviours that lead to distress, next they learn ways in which to challenge and modify these thoughts and behaviours to bring about a positive change to their emotional wellbeing. CBT is a structured approach whereby goals are identified and the therapist and client work together to find ways to work towards the client’s goals. Clients are expected to carry out tasks and assignments between sessions to take what is learnt in therapy out into their lives. Typically, CBT involves a commitment of 6 to 24 sessions depending on the nature of the problem. Often parents of younger children are recruited as co-therapists to work with the therapist and child to learn the model and thus new ways of managing the problem.
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Narrative Therapy
The core concept in Narrative Therapy is that people’s lives, identities and sense of self are shaped and defined by the meaning they attribute to their experiences and the ‘story’ they tell about their lives, both to themselves and others. Therefore, human problems are seen to arise, and be maintained, by dominant problem-saturated stories. This model views problems as separate from people and assumes people have many skills, competencies, beliefs, values, commitments and abilities that will assist them to reduce the influence of problems in their lives. Therefore, the work of the therapist is to support the young person in authoring a preferred story in which a new identity is developed which sits outside the problem-saturated narrative.
Solution Focussed Therapy
As the name suggests Solution Focused Therapy (SFT) focuses on solutions rather than problems and again works on the premise that clients are experts in their own lives and possess many strengths and resources to call upon in order to solve the problem. Therapy consists of discussions in which the client is encouraged to find their own solutions.
Acceptance and Commitment (ACT)
ACT develops psychological flexibility and is a form of behavioural therapy that combines mindfulness skills with the practice of self-acceptance. When aiming to be more accepting of your thoughts and feelings, commitment plays a key role. In the case of ACT, you commit to facing the problem head-on rather than avoiding your stresses.
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a psychotherapy that enables people to heal from the symptoms and emotional distress that are the result of disturbing life experiences such as assault, road traffic accidents, natural or man-made disasters, abuse and childhood neglect. EMDR is also increasingly used to treat symptoms which are not necessarily trauma-related, such as panic disorder, phobias, performance anxiety, self-esteem issues and other anxiety-related disorders. EMDR is a complex method of psychotherapy which integrates many of the successful elements of a range of therapeutic approaches in combination with eye movements or other forms of alternative dual attention stimulation, such as alternative hand-tapping or alternative audio tones, which appear to stimulate the brain's information processing system and activate the clients natural healing processes.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness invites you to notice where you are and what is happening and how you are responding at any given moment. It is a technique you can learn which involves making a special effort to notice what's happening in the present moment (in your mind, body and surroundings) – without judging anything. Mindfulness aims to help you: become more self-aware, feel calmer and less stressed, feel more able to choose how to respond to your thoughts and feelings, cope with difficult or unhelpful thoughts and be kinder towards yourself. Many people find practising mindfulness helps them manage their day-to-day wellbeing.
Systemic Therapy
Systemic Therapy focuses on how problems are maintained within relationships. The cause of the problem is not important, diagnosis is not assigned, rather the unhelpful patterns of behaviour between groups or family members are indentified and addressed directly by gently encouraging change to the system.
Compassion-focused therapy
Compassion Focussed therapy aims to help promote mental and emotional healing by encouraging people in treatment to be compassionate toward themselves and other people. Compassion, both toward the self and toward others, is an emotional response believed by many to be an essential aspect of well-being.
