Would you like to address issues affecting you and do you seek a place for understanding how you can support your own development and change?  Would you like this for your child?  Luisa welcomes anyone that needs counselling and works with children (age 6+), Young People and adults. 

Luisa is both a qualified teacher (PGCE) and a qualified therapist (PGDip).  Luisa has 20+ years direct experience working with children, young people and adults in education and more recently as a psychotherapeutic counsellor. Safeguarding and inclusion are key threads that have woven through her work over the years.  Additionally, Luisa has held voluntary positions indirectly influencing work with children, young people and adults as Parent Governor (primary), Staff Governor (Further Education) and Patient Safety Partner (NHS).  Luisa has experience working in the NHS sector as a counsellor offering short term therapy in 6 or 12 week blocks and in the Further Education sector offering both short-term intervention and longer-term intervention therapy.  Additionally, Luisa currently offers services as a Children and Young Persons therapist with the charity Mind contracted out to Further Education Colleges.  Luisa regularly undertakes Continuing Professional Development Training, recording this to present at any potential audit from the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).  Given substantial experience in internal and external quality assurance within education Luisa recongises the importance of seeking feedback and testimonials on her practice at the end of the therapy so that the Client voice continually shapes the services that she offers. 

Luisa has worked with wide ranging issues including but not limited to:

• Phobias
• Self-Harm
• PTSD
• Abuse – historic and current, neglect, emotional, physical, sexual
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Bereavement
• loss
• Health related issues – e.g. COPD, Cancer, Parkinsons, menopause and peri menopause
• Trauma
• Personal Development
• Neurodiversity – ADD/ADHD/Autism Spectrum
• Learning difficulties
• Neurological conditions – e.g. Tourette’s
• Cultural issues
• Identity issues
• Self Esteem
• Sexual identity
• Women’s issues
• Anger management
• Redundancy
• Stress
• Work related issues
• Suicide
• Asylum
• Historic FGM

Luisa’s specialist areas are:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Phobias
• PTSD
• Abuse
• Loss
• Health related issues
• Trauma
• Personal Development
• Learning difficulties
• Cultural issues
• Anger management
• Identity issues
• Stress
• Work related issues

Whilst sessions are always conducted in English Luisa is fluent in both Spanish and French.

If your area of need (including language) would be better signposted onto to another more suitable service a discussion about this would form part of the initial assessment and triaging service. 

Practice Description

Luisa offers face to face, online and telephone integrative individual therapy.  Luisa provides a safe, confidential, non-judgmental space to explore those issues that you would like to address respecting the privacy of those issues that you do not wish to bring into therapy.  Luisa combines a range of modalities linked to her experience both in education and psychotherapy.  Luisa draws on a range of techniques suited to your individual needs to support therapy having been trained and gained experience in integrative eclectic approaches.  Primarily this includes:

• Creative therapies (crafts, activities, games)
• Cognitive – mindful recognition, acceptance and challenge of thoughts, emotions, behaviors and core beliefs
• Mindful awareness of somatic physical impact – meditation/breathing activities
• Person Centered – encouraging your connection to your own insights and strengths
• Psychodynamic – seeking possible connections with known and unknown events (often stemming in childhood) that impact core beliefs and values. You can discuss dreams if this is an issue that you would like to address. 
• Mindful awareness of societal, cultural, intergenerational, religious (and more) impacts on your core beliefs, values and identities
• Existentialism – confronting the anxieties that arise with the inevitability of death and isolation. Accepting free will, choice and the consequences, accountability and responsibilities that accompany this. 
• Solution focused therapy – drawing on acceptance of self and commitment to helpful coping strategies and goals. Focusing on positive reframing and encouraging positive affirmations.   

Luisa offers mostly short intervention therapy in blocks of 6 or 12 weeks.  Upon request you can consider with Luisa how beneficial longer-term therapy would be for you after the first few sessions.  Alternatively, should therapy not be economically viable now, Luisa can offer single session therapy in some cases.    

Luisa does not offer couples, group or family therapy.

Luisa is the founder of a counselling and psychotherapy private practice called Met@Morphosis.  

Associations:

Luisa is a registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and strictly adheres to the BACP Code of Ethics. Luisa has indemnity insurance, an enhanced Disclosure Barring Scheme (DBS) check and is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

My first session:

When a referral or request for therapy is made an initial assessment will be sent via email to seek the information required to triage the request.  The initial assessment would need to be submitted before a session can be scheduled. Should the initial assessment outline that perhaps you would be more suited to another service to more closely match your area of need this will be communicated before attending any sessions.

The first session will readdress the initial assessment that you will have completed prior to the session to go over any questions or queries that you may have.  Luisa will ask about your expectations and Luisa will outline what she can offer and note your goals for therapy.  Once again, at this phase, should you or Luisa believe that perhaps your area of need is better suited elsewhere, you can discuss this and Luisa can support signposting.  Should you and Luisa both agree that therapy with her sounds a viable option then you will also discuss a mutually agreed contract for therapy at the first session. 

Following initial assessment and contracting a space is offered for you to talk through the reasons that bring you to the therapy room.  Honesty and openness at this stage (if you are able to) is conducive to better outcomes particularly on short term therapy.  This space is also time for you and Luisa to get to know each other and ultimately for you to decide if you would like to work with her. 

The assessment may be completed again at an interim phase of any longer-term therapy to reflect on your progress and outcomes.  All therapy (apart from Single Session Therapy) will include an ending assessment.