I’ve recently submitted my 5-year re-accreditation to UKCP, the professional body for psychotherapists in the UK. I was a touch nervous, it's a big undertaking to represent properly my reflections on psychotherapy in terms of my practice and learning over such a long period. Whilst focused on the challenge, I missed noticing the insight and opportunity that was coming my way.
I’m a fairly organised and structured person, it was good to have logs of everything I needed, and to be able to collate things readily. Reviewing my continuing professional development activities over years was really fruitful, reminding myself of how deep and wide my curiosity has run and how much I have reflected on and learned was a big confidence boost. Likewise, recognising the quantity of client work I have been lucky enough to do, and the breadth and diversity of the people I have been able to support enabled me to reflect on how far I have come as a professional in recent years.
I was able to identify a number of things that are really important to me in the way I work.
Among them are:
Diversity and respect for difference, valuing that which is unique in each person
Creating safety and enabling healing of trauma and attachment wounds
Enabling embodiment and integration of all that a client is, connecting with our whole selves and each other
Being real and present, experiencing all it means to be human right here in the room, with play and laughter as well as the full range of challenging emotions and thoughts
After twelve years of accredited practice, and ten of clinical supervision, I feel ready to take the next step in my professional life. In these next five years I will be exploring how I might combine my previous capability as a professional trainer with my depth and breadth as a psychotherapist, and give back to the next generation of psychotherapists as they develop.
I am as excited and enthusiastic about my work as I was back in 2011 when I saw my first therapeutic client. A huge thank you to each and every person who has supported me and worked with me since then, you have all shaped my path and for that I feel blessed.
