I am a Clinical Psychologist and work with children and adults. My experience working in mental health services over the past decade has ranged from schools and charities to inpatient wards, adolescent and eating disorder specialist services. I’ve always been interested in how people’s experiences, particularly early ones or within relationships, can shape how we come to understand ourselves and the world, and how we relate to others.
I’m trained to a doctoral level in a range of therapeutic models, including cognitive-behavioural, compassion-focused, systemic and psychodynamic therapies, meaning my approach is not ‘one-size-fits-all’ but rather tailored to the person. I love to continually learn, and am currently training in ISTDP, which was driven by my passion for working in an attachment-focused and psychodynamic way. My approach includes a willingness to collaborate and learn from the people I work with. I’m conscious people may come to therapy with varying degrees of trust, and so am particularly mindful of pacing and emotional safety. This is especially at the beginning of therapy when it can take time to trust and feel comfortable.
Rather than just helping manage symptoms, I aim to be warm, closely attuned and thoughtful, in a way that gets to the roots of emotional suffering. In doing so, such work aims to encourage people’s confidence in their ability to make steps towards positive change themselves, and lead to meaningful changes long beyond therapy ending.
Iona is registered with the Health Care Professions Council membership number PYL043048.