Beauty After Bruises
Beauty After Bruises is an American website that provides information on Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) and Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID).
Experienced in a multitude of issues in both private practice, agency settings and within the National Health Service. This has helped me to identify my specialist areas of working with those living with the legacy of trauma and abuse.
Prior to my training I worked as a company director based in London. After 25 years and benefiting greatly from personal psychotherapy, I was inspired to embrace a lifestyle change and re-train in counselling and psychotherapy. This has enriched my life personally and has given me a greater depth of personal satisfaction. Enhanced self-awareness and training have allowed me to enable positive change in people’s lives.
The National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society
A member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
Enhanced DBS Checked
Verified by Psychology Today
Accredited counsellor for the UK registered charity
Member of UK AEDP Community
Continued Professional Development
I have an on-going personal commitment to continued professional development as part of my own core beliefs as well as a requirement of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy’s Ethical Framework. I believe in working to professional standards and keeping myself informed about the latest developments in the field.
Please see a selection of my latest CPD activities:
2025 10-week ACT Immersion – 24 CPD hrs
© ACT Courses – Praxis Continuing Education and Training with Dr Steven C Hayes Reno, Nevada (USA)
A deep dive into Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Learning how to read the six psychological flexibility processes; acceptance, self as context, committed action, contact with the present moment, values, cognitive defusion and target them with a wide range of exercises. Through several real-play therapy sessions, clinical tapes, and exercises, Dr Hayes demonstrates first-hand how to apply ACT with clients.
2025 Dealing with Distress: Working with Suicide and Self-Harm – 6 CPD hrs
Carolyn Spring Ltd with Carolyn Spring (UK)
Our default response to self-harm and suicidality is to think in terms of ‘risk’. But what if that approach in itself actually increases the risk? What if, instead, we thought in terms of reducing distress, and what if by doing that it in fact also reduced the risk? This course looks at how to develop a collaborative – and kinder – approach to working with people in intense pain, and explains the fundamental but enlightening neuroscience behind both self-harm and suicide.
2024 Working with Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse – 13 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd with Christiane Sanderson
Tragically, childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is far too common in communities throughout the world – impacting boys and girls of all ages, ethnicities, and economic backgrounds. And more often than not, these incidents go unreported, leaving the survivor to carry the pain for years and decades after the events are over. Treating clients who struggle with emotional dysregulation, chronic shame, addictions, self-harm, relationship difficulties, or similar, persistent mental health issues that are symptoms of Childhood Sexual Abuse.
2024 Working with the Pain of Abandonment – 4 CPD hrs
National Institute (USA) for the Clinical Application of Behavioural Medicine
Exploring some of the harmful coping strategies that not only create more pain, but put clients at even greater risk of being rejected. Working with the desperate behaviours and hyper-reactivity that can make abandonment a self-fulfilling prophecy? Illustrating the latest strategies from the world’s 26 top experts including Dan Siegel MD, Bessel van der Kolk MD, Peter Levine MD and Pat Ogden PhD and colleagues to hear how they work with clients who have been abandoned.
2024 Sex Desire and Attachment – 6 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd with Emily Nagoski Ph.D
Am I normal? is often the client’s refrain in the therapy room – over so many issues that arise during clinical sessions. Dr Nagoski is the bestselling author of “Come as You Are” and a sex education expert. She explores the bodies arousal system in light of the science of attachment and sex and the trauma survivor.
2024 Applying Polyvagal Theory and Memory Reconsolidation in Practice – 2 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd with Kate Cohen-Posey, LMHC, LMFT
Exploring cutting-edge advances in brain research and how to translate it into practical methods that may reduce clients’ resistance, transform deeply disturbing emotions and reinforce treatment interventions? Locating hidden strengths and dissolving distress by activating their brains’ reward centres. This workshop uses tools developed from both memory reconsolidation and Polyvagal Theory.
2023 Certified Clinical Trauma Professional Training Level-2 (CCTP II) – 22 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd
with Janina Fisher Ph.D.
Treatment of Complex Trauma and Dissociative Disorders including Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Working with post-traumatic triggers, repair deep attachment wounds, help with harmful coping strategies such as substance abuse and self-harming practices and overwhelming emotions of shame, anger, anxiety, fear and depression. Contributions from Bessel van der Kolk, Dan Siegel, Richard Schwartz, Judith Herman, Stephen Porges.
2023 Certified Clinical Trauma Professional Training Level-1 (CCTP I) – 24 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd
with Janina Fisher Ph.D.
Working with the Legacy of Neurobiological Trauma and techniques from leading, evidence-based methods, including Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Internal Family Systems, mindfulness, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and psychoanalysis. Contributions from Bessel van der Kolk, Dan Siegel, Richard Schwartz, Judith Herman and Stephen Porges.
2022 The Myth of Normal in an Insane Culture & Psychedelics in Modern Healing – 4 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd
with Dr Gabor Maté
Digital Seminar on current topics in Psychotherapy and recovery. Mental Health and its relationship with our hyper-stressed, materialistic society, physical and mental illness are not aberrations but natural outcomes of a way of life. Treatment, therefore, must go beyond a focus on symptoms and diagnoses to address the causes of dysfunction from a bio-psycho-social perspective. The use of psychedelic substances, once considered therapeutically off-limits, in the clinical treatment of PTSD, depression, addictions, and a range of other conditions.
2022 Compassionate Enquiry Masterclass – 5.5 CPD hrs
PESI UK Psychotherapy Excellence Ltd with Dr Gabor Maté
In-session demonstrations and in-depth, therapist-to-therapist conversations, Dr Maté demonstrates how to attune to clients and guide them to the root problem and discover new solutions. Using Compassionate Inquiry to overcome addiction, anxiety, co-dependence, ADHD, and other difficult mental health challenges.
2022 Surviving Sexual Abuse and Thriving in Adulthood – 6 CPD hrs
Essential Therapy Training with Dana Barrows, Illinois, USA
Taught from the perspective of a therapist and sexual abuse survivor. Recognising the cognitive, emotional, and somatic symptoms within the nervous system and specifically how to treat each symptom with a unique integrated approach, healing in both the neocortex and subcortical parts of the brain.
2020-2021 Mindfulness Based Experiential Therapy – 372 CPD hrs
Level 6. Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body
MBET Centre, London Bridge SE1 (remote due to COVID19).
Advanced course in Mindfulness Based Experiential Therapy focusing on diversity, culture, ethics, research and the use of the self in psychotherapy.
2020 Expert Strategies for Working with Anxiety – 5 CPD hrs
National (US) Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioural Medicine.
Expert treatment tools and interventions for Anxious clients. Content including Dr Pat Ogden, Dr Stephen Porges, Dr Peter Levine and Dr Rick Hanson.
2020 Treating Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – 2 CPD hrs
Mind Body Breakthrough
Strategies for helping clients overcome OCD including Exposure and Response Prevention with Wale Oladipo
2020 AEDP Workshop; Increasing the Therapists Embodied Presence in Online Work – Online 3 CPD hrs
Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy workshop with Sigal Bahat AEDP Supervisor Israel.
2020 Treating Intrusive Thoughts and the Inner Critical Voice – Online 2 CPD hrs
Mind Body Breakthrough
An anxiety recovery workshop with Wale Oladipo
2019 Trauma and the Body: Somatisation & Dissociation, 4 CPD hrs
Carolyn Spring
Both a professional and personal perspective on somatisation and dissociation, as a courageous and compassionate survivor herself of organised abuse and incest, this course looks at the ways in which trauma affects our mind and body.
2019 Working with Shame – 4 CPD hrs
National (US) Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioural Medicine.
A course to complement “Treating Trauma” on the neurobiology of shame and how to heal from it, with content from Dr Marsha Linehan, Dr Kelly McGonical, Dr Stan Tatkin, Dr Sue Johnson, Dr Ruth Lanius & Dr Shelly Harrell.
2019 Working with Shame, 6 CPD hrs
Carolyn Spring, Amnesty International, London
Looking at what goes on in both the body and the brain during our evolved shame responses. The importance of the right brain in therapy for shame, balanced with left brain approaches. Aimed at helping those with a diagnosis of a mental health response to trauma such as Borderline Personality Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or Dissociative Identity Disorder.
BACP CPD HUB Addiction Updates- Online 5 CPD hrs
- 2019 The Neuroscience of Addiction, Dr Stella Vlachou.
- Searching for a Secure Base? Attachment Perspectives on Addiction, Christine Askew
- Practical Counselling Strategies and Interventions in Addiction Work,
- Faisal Mahmood. Sugar – the New Baddie on the Block, Lou Lebentz
- What’s Wrong with Porn? The Rising Prevalence of Sex and Pornography Addiction, Paula Hall
2018 Mindfulness Based Relapse Prevention – Online 8 Weeks
The Centre for Addiction Treatment Studies
Mindfulness based relapse prevention was originally developed at the University of Washington Addictive Behaviours Research Centre. It is not a replacement for regular or residential treatment but it is useful at the point when you have been through treatment and are now faced with navigating the world full of temptation and dealing with cravings and urges.
2018 Treating Trauma Master Series, 5 CPD hrs
National (US) Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioural Medicine.
An in-depth look into the expert treatment tools and interventions that can be applied to work with traumatised clients. Content including Dr Bessel van der Kolk, Dr Pat Ogden, Dr Dan Siegel, Dr Stephen Porges, Dr Allan Schore & Dr Peter Levine.
2018 Working with Couples – London, 2 days
Endorsed by College of Sexual Relationship Therapists.
2018 Cognitive Analytical Therapy (CAT) Workshop – Brighton, 2 days
Brighton General Hospital, Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation trust.
2018 Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) Immersion – London, 4 days
Seminar with Dr Diana Fosha. Undoing Aloneness & the Transformation of Emotional Suffering.
2017 Congress of Attachment and Trauma – London, 3 days
The resilience of mind & body, with the leading academics in the field of interpersonal neurobiology: Dr Louis Cozolino, Dr Rachel Yehuda, Dr Bessel Van Der Kolk, Dr Diana Fosha, Dr Antonio Damasio, Dr Stephen Porges, Dr Judith Herman, Dr Vittorio Gallese, Dr Pat Ogden, Dr Robin Shapiro & Dr Daniel Siegel.
2017 Advanced Mindfulness Training – London, 5 days
With Hari Murday, MBET, Psychosynthesis Trust.
2016 Understanding the Many Faces of Anxiety – London, 4hrs
Seminar with Dr Rob Neborsky.
Resources
INTERCONNECTEDNESS
Whilst listening to Matthew Syed’s, Sideways programme on BBC Radio 4, I learned of a phenomena called the “overview effect” and thought I would share what a space shuttle era […]
SUPPORT FOR SEXUAL ABUSE SURVIVORS
Evidence shows as many as one in four adults have experienced some form of sexual abuse before the age of 18. One in Four specialises in supporting the survivors of […]