Conference: A Pluralistic Approach to Trauma – Multiple Perspectives

7th International Conference on Pluralistic Counselling & Psychotherapy

PROGRAME GUIDE

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

CONFERENCE SPEAKERS

CONFERENCE POSTERS

7th International Conference on Pluralistic Counselling & Psychotherapy

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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

John McLeod John McLeod

Sanctuary,Trauma&Psychotherapy

A Dialogue between Decolonising & Pluralistic Perspectives

Working with a group of colleagues at the University of York St John in England, Divine Charura has developed a programme of research that uses a decolonising perspective to explore the experiences of people who are seeking sanctuary as a result of traumatic dislocation of kinship relationships, and the kinds of therapeutic support that may be helpful in such circumstances.

This keynote presentation will explore the implications of that work for pluralistic practice. Four key themes, woven through this research programme as a whole, will be discussed in turn: (i) appreciation of the ongoing, everyday relevance and influence of coloniality; (ii) groundedness: locating research and practice in concrete knowledge of specific situated events and socio-political realities, as opposed to reference to abstract contextual factors; (iii) de-centring the researcher or therapist voice: strategies for avoiding placing the researcher or therapist in an expert or privileged position of power; (iv) co-production and codesign as core principles for therapy practice: flexible and improvised forms of therapeutic support, informed by a relational ethics of solidarity and care.

Divine Charura Divine Charura

These themes reflect a commitment to recognising and engaging with the facets and diversity of the other, with the goal of avoiding being entrapped into seeing ourselves as the/an expert who knows what wrong or happening with the other (colonization and misrecognition). The opening section of this dialogue will take the form of a conversation between the two presenters around how a decolonising perspective both challenges and extends current pluralistic practice. This conversation will then open out to incorporate the voices of conference participants. A briefing paper outlining and summarising key studies published by the York St John group, will be made available to conference delegates in advance, to facilitate their active participation in this event.

Divine Charura is Professor of Counselling Psychology at the York St John University. He is a counselling psychologist, registered and licenced as a practitioner psychologist with the Health and Care Professions Council in England (UK), and an adult psychotherapist as well as Honorary Fellow of the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP).

Divine has an interest in psychological trauma research. He has co-authored and edited numerous books. These include Love and Therapy: In relationship [co-edited with Stephen Paul] and with Colin Lago has recently co-edited Black Identities + White therapies: Race respect and diversity, (2021). His latest book is the Handbook of Social Justice in Psychological Therapies. Power, politics, change (co-edited with Dr Laura Winter in 2023). Divine is a lover of music, art and outdoor pursuits.

John McLeod is Professor of Counselling, Institute for Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy, Dublin, and has held similar positions in Scotland, England, New Zealand, Italy and Norway. He is a counsellor, psychotherapist, educator, researcher and writer who is committed to the development of a flexible, collaborative and research-informed approach to therapy.

Recent publications include Pluralistic Therapy, Distinctive Features (Routledge, 2018), Embedded Counselling: A Practical Guide for Helping Professionals (with Julia McLeod, Open University Press, 2022) and Psychotherapy as Making (with Rolf Sundet, Frontiers in Psychology, 2022). His life is organised around finding a balance between looking after grandchildren, growing vegetables, and the struggle to overcome coloniality and ecological collapse.

Vikki

Reynolds Vikki Reynolds

'Trauma'andResistance

Innovative Responses to Oppression, Violence and Suffering -

Vikkiwillsharestoriesofpracticeandactsofresistancethatinspirebelieved-inhope,describingactivist-informedwaysofrespondingtosufferinginpersonswho havebeenoppressedandharmed.Thisapproachrequiresadeconstructionof ‘trauma’andthetraumaindustry,andinsteadcentresonwitnessingfolks’wise andcreativeandcollectiveactsofresistance Justice-doingandadecolonising stancefortheworkisrequiredtoresistpsychology’sneutralityandobjectivitythat oftenblamespeoplefortheirownsufferingfromoppression.

Awitnessingapproachrequiresthatwesituatepersonalsufferinginits sociopoliticalcontextofnecropolitics&structuralabandonmentunderausterity andneo-liberalism.WitnessingResistanceacknowledgesthatwhereverthereis oppressionthereisresistance,andresiststheindividualisationand medicalizationofbothsufferingandactsofresistanceintocriteriaof‘trauma’and othermentalillnesses.

Vikkiwilladdress:

Adecolonizing&justice-doingethicalstance

Resistindividualization,objectivity&neutralityoftraumaIndustry

Witnessingstanceinformedbydirectactionactivism

UnderstandingsofActsofResistance

Storiesfrompractice

Vikki’sarticles&speaksfreeat

Vikki Reynolds (PhD RCC) is an activist/ therapist and community organizer who works to bridge the worlds of social justice activism with community work and therapy.

Vikki is a white settler on the territories of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam nations. Vikki's people are Irish and English folks, and she is a heterosexual woman with cisgender privilege. Her experience includes supervision and therapy with People with Lived/Living Experience and other workers responding to the drug poisoning catastrophe, refugees and survivors of torture - including Indigenous people who have survived residential schools and other state violence, sexualized violence counsellors, mental health and substance misuse counsellors, housing and shelter workers, activists and working alongside gender and sexually diverse communities.

Vikki is an Adjunct Professor and has written and presented internationally. Articles & speaks free at: www.vikkireynolds.ca

7th International Conference on Pluralistic Counselling & Psychotherapy

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MultiplePerspectives

CONFERENCE SPEAKERS

Andrew R Andrew R

NavigatingRelationalEthicsin Day-to-DayPractice

Join Lynne Gabriel and Andrew Reeves for this engaging 1 hour session titled “Navigating Relational Ethics in Day-to-Day Practice,” where they explore the core themes of their recently launched book.

This session will delve into the critical importance of translating ethical concepts into practical tools embedded in a pluralistic approach, that can be used in everyday practice. Drawing on theories, contemporary challenges, and the authors’ own lived experiences, Lynne and Andrew will discuss how to approach ethical dilemmas through multiple lenses, including social justice and antioppressive practice.

Participants will gain insights into developing reflexive ethical literacy, navigating complex relational and professional contexts, and understanding the impact of digital technologies and AI in the counselling professions.

Expect a thought-provoking dialogue that not only addresses ethical frameworks and pluralism, but also invites you to reflect on your role as a practitioner in today’s evolving landscape.

Lynne is Professor of Counselling and Mental Health at York St John University, York, UK. She is a British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Accredited and Registered Counsellor and Psychotherapist, and an honorary fellow of the association. She is a trained supervisor of practitioners working within the counselling, mental health and helping professions. Originally trained as a mental health nurse, Lynne has been a key player in the counselling and mental health fields for many years, contributing at local, regional, national, and international levels. Lynne has a leadership role in mental health transformation in York, working with the health and mental health system partners to bring about co-designed and coproduced change.

Lynne’s current research areas include public mental health, domestic and relationship abuse and trauma, pluralistic approaches to ethics for the counselling professions, group interventions for bereavement and loss, review and evaluation of standardised mental health measures, and evaluation of the provision of online counselling. Lynne has published books on ethics in practice and research papers on multiple aspects of work in the counselling professions. Lynne is working with coeditor Professor Andrew Reeves on an Ethics in Action series for Routledge and is lead author for the series header book, Navigating Relational Ethics in Day-to-Day Practice (co-author Professor Andrew Reeves; book is in production and due for publication in September 2024).

Dr. Andrew Reeves is a Professor in the Counselling Professions and Mental Health, a BACP Senior Accredited Counsellor/Psychotherapist and a Registered Social Worker.

His practice experience spans over 35 years, when he first trained as a Samaritans volunteer at 18, before moving into social and work therapy. His research focus in working with risk in therapy, having experienced the suicide of a client during his training. Since then, he was published extensively in this area. He is previous Editor-in-Chief of Counselling and Psychotherapy Research journal, past-Chair of BACP and is Chair of the York St John Advisory Board Counselling and Mental Health Research Clinic. He supervises mostly doctoral research in counselling, psychotherapy and psychological trauma.

Leigh Gardner Leigh Gardner

Development of Arts for the Blues for Trauma

Using arts with patients for trauma related experiences became prominent from the 1900s, when music was used as therapy to treat soldiers following WWI. Since then, the arts have been used more systematically especially with WWII veterans struggling with symptoms of trauma. Working with the arts (e.g. mark making, movement, writing, music making) in therapy offers a good alternative as retelling traumatic experiences can be difficult for clients.

The contribution of the arts lies in the use of the non-verbal and symbolic techniques as they offer a protective shield through creating an aesthetic distance which allows clients to work with trauma while minimising the risk of being overwhelmed by traumatic memory. Several authors developed integrative models for creative psychotherapies with trauma that use different arts modalities depending on clients’ needs and preferences. However, there are limited models that are developed using evidence-based frameworks and that are informed by the recent development in trauma theory.

Following Medical Research Council framework for developing complex interventions we developed a creative evidence-based group psychotherapy

Joanna Joanna Omylinska-Thurston

called Arts for the Blues (Omylinska-Thurston et al, 2020). The model originally was developed for depression but it has been adapted to working with trauma using Herman’s model (1994) (Omylinska-Thurston & Gardner, 2023). Arts for the Blues for Trauma highlights the need for building safety, containment and emotion regulation when using creative arts in psychotherapy.

During the presentation we will outline the Arts for the Blues model in its original format but also discuss the adaptations needed for working with clients experiencing symptoms of trauma.

Leigh Gardner has been a counsellor for 26 years working in schools and private practice. Leigh recently worked at Metanoia Institute as Director of Studies of the BSc (Hons) Person-Centred Pluralistic course and before that, as Senior Lecturer. She has also worked at University of Salford lecturing in counselling and psychotherapy at BSc and MSc levels. Leigh has worked with Arts for the Blues running workshops and providing supervision for a while now and has a background in creative education and drama. She is part of Playback Theatre Manchester, telling real life stories from the audience through improvisation.

Dr Joanna Omylinska-Thurston is a Counselling Psychologist at the NHS Talking Therapies at the Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and a Lecturer in Counselling and Psychotherapy at the University of Salford. Her primary research interest is in psychological therapies that are effective and helpful to clients. She is a co-founder of Arts for the Blues a creative evidence-based group psychological therapy for depression which is currently tested in the NHS and charity settings. She has been awarded an NIHR Fellowship for a Feasibility RCT of Arts for the Blues in NHS Talking Therapies.

Joanna Omylinska-Thurston | University of Salford

A

thematic synthesis of qualitative evidence how do psychotherapists across the psychotherapy professions and their clients experience expressive arts activities in therapy to facilitate complex trauma recovery?

Authors and affiliations.

Karen Eilidh Thomson, Trainee Counselling Psychologist, Glasgow Caledonian University and NHS Lanarkshire. Lisa Christie, Registered Dramatherapist, Private Practice, Glasgow Dr. Kevin Hogan, Chartered Counselling Psychologist and Lecturer, Glasgow Caledonian University

Background: (why this practice area might be relevant to delegates) Acts of interpersonal, repeated, and inescapable harm can be rendered unspeakable in their impact. Inside and outside of the therapy room, expressive arts activities (EAAs) can be a useful medium for communicating without or beyond words. No prior systematic review has considered how EAAs have been used and experienced across the psychotherapy professions during complex trauma (CT) treatment with adult clients.

Practice Focus: (an outline of the specific area of practice, including specific elements) This presentation will review and critique the application of EAAs within CT-focused psychotherapeutic practice broadly, with adult clients.

Karen Eilidh Thomson Karen Eilidh Thomson

SYMPOSIUM

Methods (if a research study or case study, including ethical procedures) This systematic review synthesised qualitative evidence about how EAAs activities employed within one-to-one psychotherapy sessions (across the psychotherapy professions) are experienced by adult clients and/or their therapists to facilitate CT recovery. Peer-reviewed, English language articles published worldwide, anytime up until 31st December 2023 were sought for inclusion. A priori searches across ProQuest, EBSCOhost, Web of Science, SCOPUS were conducted, before manual searches of Sage Journals and Taylor and Francis Online. Article quality was appraised using the JoannaBriggs Institute ‘QARI’ Checklist, with the richness of contributions to synthesis given greater emphasis. Eight papers were found to be suitable for inclusion following reference and citation checking.

Results/Findings

Four analytical themes were identified: (1) EAAs offer containment that facilitates and supports self-expression; (2) EAAs offer empowerment through developing self/other representations that support understanding and selfcompassion; (3) EAAs offer distinct benefits and challenges within therapeutic relationships; (4) EAAs offer a means of exploring and expressing the body.

Implications for research and practice

EAAs have been long regarded as useful for expressing, exploring, processing and containing the unspeakable. This renders them as potentially useful within pluralistic CT-focused psychotherapeutic practice. Nevertheless, limitations include a profound underrepresentation of research conducted outside the expressive arts psychotherapeutic professions.

Karen Eilidh Thomson is in her final stage of doctoral training in counselling psychology at Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland. She is currently working within NHS Scotland psychological services as a trainee. Karen's doctoral research thus far has focused upon how creativity can be applied within psychotherapeutic practice to improve the accessibility of 'talk therapies', particularly with adult clients with a traumatic history. Her ongoing empirical research is investigating experiences of expressive arts activities within trauma-focused psychological interventions, from both client and clinician perspectives.

Arts for the Blues Groups for Women who Experienced Domestic Violence

DomesticabuseisaseriouspublichealthissueintheUnitedKingdom,withfarreachingconsequencesformanywomen.OneineveryfourwomeninEngland andWaleswillexperiencedomesticabuseatsomepointintheirlives,andthose whodoaretwiceaslikelytosufferfromdepression Thissmall-scaleservice evaluationtookplacewithwomenwhohavelivedexperienceofdomesticabuse andengagewithawiderdomesticviolenceservice.Theinterventiontoolplace over10weeksandinvestigatedthetherapeuticprocessandoutcomesoftaking partinaweekly‘ArtsfortheBlues’creativegroup.Keythemestoemergeinclude asafespaceforauthenticself-expression,theimportanceofsharedlived experience,theabilitytobemorepresentwithfeelings,betterconnectiontothe body,betteremotionalregulationandfeelingmorepositiveaboutthefuture.The interventionhighlightedthevalueofusingmulti-modalarts-basedinterventionsin agroupsettingwithsurvivorsofdomesticabuse.

Feedbackfromparticipantsincluded:“I’verealisedit’sokaytobemeandtoshow myfeelingsandthatI’mnotaproblemtopeople."“I’venotbeenjudgedfor showingmypainphysicallyandmentally"“Itgavemetimetothinkandexpress myself.”“Ihavebettercopingmechanismsnow.”

Sara Domville Sara Domville

Sara Domville is a creative psychotherapist with a background in drama and performing arts and extensive experience in arts, health, and wellbeing. She is a founding member of Blaze, a youth-led charity, and a coach and facilitator with UNION, the Northern School of Arts and Activism. Sara is currently a community-based creative health associate and member of the Arts4Us research team at Edge Hill University, an innovative AHRC-funded project focusing on creative therapies and mental health for children and young people.

She runs a creative arts therapy group with women from the Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Domestic Abuse Service in Accrington. Sara holds an MSc in Contemporary Creative Approaches to Counselling and Psychotherapy.

Flowing towards freedom: Reflexive and pluralistic learnings from research with cult survivors

Background

In creative flow, we do not always know what we will uncover – within clients, within ourselves, within relational dynamics, and regarding research processes themselves. Arts for the Blues (A4B) is a pluralistically-derived, multimodal arts therapy approach. We aimed to pilot A4B with cult survivors and explore flow experience. We present findings and experiences from a 90min A4B workshop in a cultic studies conference setting.

Methods

During and after the workshop, we used pluralistic methods (Collective Biography, artwork, descriptive statistics, and IPA) to bring to light experiences, processes and dynamics within both the participants and within ourselves as a team of researchers after a difficult experience in the context.

Findings

Reflexive Collective Biography findings include the intrinsic tension in the interplay between holding therapeutic qualities whilst also holding firm research boundaries, fundamental therapeutic factors/A4B ingredients which must be present for participants to immerse themselves in creative flow, and recommendations for conducting research in conference settings. Findings from a mixed method analysis involving interviews with two participants include cult survivors’ discomfort with research processes, the healing power of the arts, inner critic as an obstacle to creative flow, and the impact of their creative work for progressing towards a personal goal.

Ailsa Parsons Ailsa Parsons

Discussion

Findings are examined in relation to therapeutic principles and flow dimensions.

Conclusion

Overall, we reflect on and reaffirm a commitment to radical, antioppressive research and first-person perspectives which foregrounds participants' needs throughout, to maintain meta-awareness and creative flexibility in research, and additional considerations when researching traumatised populations.

Ailsa Parsons is a Chartered Psychologist, and creative Psychotherapeutic Counsellor (core accreditation - Dance Movement Psychotherapy). Ailsa teaches in counselling and psychotherapy, therapy ethics and human rights, Dance Movement Psychotherapy and music psychology. Her research interweaves pluralistic and creative therapy innovations, including Arts for the Blues, a multimodal and creative psychological therapy for depression. Her PhD research explores psychological flow and advances the novel concept of Creative Therapeutic Flow.

An ‘Arts for the Blues’ Intervention for Mental Health and Wellbeing of Children in Mainstream Primary Schools: A Multidisciplinary Mixed-Methods Approach to Investigate its Effectiveness and Mechanisms of Change

Background:

Across the UK, increasing demand for mental health services for children and young people is not being met by mental health services. Key findings in the literature indicate schools have been identified as an appropriate and timely platform for early mental health intervention to address mental health needs of children as a preventative approach prior to a diagnosed mental health condition. There is need to test the mechanistic processes involved in creativearts-based mental health interventions to advance the field toward a precision intervention approach as opposed to solely posttreatment outcomes. Finally, child- focused measures are sensitive to intervention change, and capture meaningful change for this user group. These findings informed the aims and design of the current mixed-methods study.

Study aims:

To investigate: 1. the effect of an adapted visual-arts based ‘Arts for the Blues’ intervention on measures of mental health in children; 2. the underpinning

Lydia Pringle Lydia Pringle

Vicky Karkou Vicky Karkou

mechanisms of change involved; and 3. the feasibility of the intervention, with respect to acceptability, child engagement and sensitivity of the measures used.

Methods:

Children (N=173) aged 9-11years with mild-to-moderate mental health difficulties across five mainstream primary schools in the North-West took part in the study. The visual arts-based intervention was delivered in weekly sessions across 8 weeks with participants spread across 9 intervention groups. This mixed-methods study employed a range of quantitative, qualitative and artsbased measures to capture mental health outcomes and mechanisms of change which will be analysed using statistical analysis and thematic analysis.

Lydia is a PhD student at Edge Hill University, with her key research interests in children’s mental health and wellbeing. With a focus on the psychological mechanisms of change, Lydia is dedicated to advancing research that promotes mental health in young populations, particularly within education. Lydia’s previous work has focused on motor stereotypy behaviour in children with intellectual disabilities. Her work aims to uncover the underlying factors that influence emotional and psychological development in children, contributing to better therapeutic practices and interventions. Outside of academia, Lydia is passionate about supporting families and young people with a range of disabilities to encourage their integration within the community, further enriching the holistic approach to mental health research.

Prof Vicky Karkou is the Director of the Research Centre for Arts and Wellbeing and an internationally known academic and researcher in the arts and arts psychotherapies with external funding successes of over £10 million, over 100 peer reviewed articles, 5 authored/edited/co-edited books and numerous other publications.

She is involved in the ERA study, the largest arts therapies randomised controlled trial in the UK funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). More recently, she received funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) to lead the Arts4Us project, one of the largest

collaborative project in the UK (£2.5 million) to develop accessible placebased arts and arts psychotherapies interventions for children and young people. This is built on prior funding from AHRC that involved scaling up the Arts for the Blues model, an evidence-based creative group psychotherapy for people with depression.

Vicky is a founding member of the International Creative Arts Therapies Research Alliance, working on internationally commissioned projects from the WHO Arts and Health Office. With funding from the Wellcome Trust and collaboration with colleagues from India and the Caribbean, she supervised a systematic review on arts interventions to support the mental health of helping professionals. She has received funding from the European Union on projects relating to e-learning for young people and creative interventions for cancer care. Other funding streams include the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Arts Council, national and international charities, professional associations and Clinical Commissioning Groups.

The Challenges of Working Pluralistically with A Human Trafficked Client Seeking Asylum

AccordingtoPartavianandKyriakopoulos(2021)‘socio-politicalfactorsand asylum-seekingprocessesareacknowledgedasmajorinhibitorsofpositivewellbeingandtherapeuticeffectivenessinmentalhealthpractitionersworkingwith thispopulation’.

Thiscasestudyexploresthechallengesofpluralistictherapeuticworkwitha clientwhoexperiencedcomplextraumaasaresultofhumantraffickingandwas seekingasylumintheUK.Thesessionwillconsidertheimpactoftheasylum seekingprocessontheclient,thetherapistandthenatureofthework.

Anna Fox is a Course Leader for the pluralistic BA Counselling and Therapeutic Practice degree at USW. She qualified as a CBT therapist in 2010 and alongside her academic role she works as a private practitioner offering CBT through a pluralistic lens. She also works as a supervisor and an operational manager/ senior counsellor for a low - cost counselling agency providing counselling support in South Wales. Her area of particular interest is working with disability and Neurodivergence.

She was a member of the Oxfordshire Autism Advisory service, and was instrumental, as Chair of Trustees, in the setting up and running of a centre for families with disabilities (thomley.org.uk) for over 20 years. Her counselling experience includes working with trauma with adults and children in a variety of settings.

Anna Fox Anna Fox

Pluralistic Art Psychotherapy in Forensic Settings in Northern Ireland

Methods:

The paper includes anonymised case examples and qualitative and quantitative data from routine evaluation of practice. Consent for sharing data was included in the contract and evaluation with service users. Ethical approval was given by the funders.

Results/Findings:

Quantitative data indicated a positive change that was statistically significant and this aligned with qualitative data.

Implications for research and practice:

The work indicated how pluralistic art psychotherapy can be a useful approach when working with people affected by conflict-related issues and trauma. Cultural sensitivity and risk management are vital. In forensic settings, there is a need to manage the complex system dynamics. This is an under researched topic and further research is needed.

Dr Caryl Sibbett Dr Caryl Sibbett

Refugees, Justice and Psychotherapy: A Multi-Modal Approach

Asylum seekers and refugees are a displaced population for whom ‘home’ can no longer be taken for granted. With multiples losses, relationship ruptures, possible experience of violence or witnessing life threatening events along with the transition to a new habitat, a refugee’s whole sense of self and understanding of the world can be deeply challenged. It can be so de-stabilizing, that one’s sense of identity becomes fragmented. Thoughts, feelings, behaviours, body sensations, relationships, hopes and aspirations can all be significantly altered and become disconnected.

To be effective therapeutically, an understanding of the multiple contexts that frame a refugee’s life and a recognition of the multi-dimensionality of their experience is essential. A safe space and relationship forms the foundation for addressing these complexities. Based upon the work of Solace, a specialist therapeutic service for refugees and asylum seekers in Yorkshire, a multi-modal framework will be presented with case examples illustrating a justice informed approach to psychotherapy with refugees and asylum seekers

Anne Burghgraef, Solace Clinical Director, Psychotherapist &Trainer BA MA

MSW PgDip, UKCP Reg EMDR Practitioner

As the Clinical Director of Solace Surviving Exile and Persecution, Anne has developed Solace’s specialist therapeutic services for asylum seekers and refugees since it began in April 2006. She manages a team of more than 30 Therapists offering a range of therapies ncluding individual psychotherapy,

Anne Burghgraef Anne Burghgraef

family and groups therapies throughout the Yorkshire and Humber region.

Anne is a Family and SystemicPsychotherapist registered with the United Kingdom Council of Psychotherapy (UKCP 06158770), as well as a specialist trauma Therapist. Anne has 35+ years of experience of working as a mental health practitioner, psychotherapist and teacher/trainer in various contexts. Recently she developed two e-learning courses on understanding refugee mental health and providing effective therapeutic support.

Anne has also worked for Leeds City Council as a specialist foster carer offering Supported Lodgings to unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Young people (UASCs) since 2016.

A Qualitative Study into Therapists’ Experiences of Early Intervention (EI)

Background:

With the recent establishment of school-based counselling for children in certain counties in Ireland, the researcher wanted to investigate the importance of having a pluralistic approach (PA) to EI.

Practice Focus:

This study aims to ascertain five therapists’ experiences relating to EI through an exploratory investigation and to examine if EI can alter a child’s life direction when they are in primary school. Four of the interviewees studied in the Masters in Pluralistic Counselling programme at IICP College.

Method:

Semi-structured interviews were conducted and thematically analysed using a qualitative approach. The IICP gave the research ethical approval, and the practitioner worked in line with the IACP’s Code of Ethics.

Eoin Heneghan Eoin Heneghan

Findings:

Several essential themes emerged that can lead to EI having a significant impact on a child’s trajectory during their time in school. The respondents’ perspectives, which were unique, unveiled several salient themes that accurately represent their experience with EI. Several of these themes are consistent with prior research findings, while others contradict the existing literature on EI for children when at school.

Conclusions:

Due to the self-selection of the participants, it is not possible to ascertain the generalisability of the results. Further qualitative study is necessary to see if similar themes exist in the narratives of other communities; however, it is probable that these findings are applicable to other populations.Implications: It appears essential to keep an open mind with EI’s to see what intervention best suits each child, family, and school in a collaborative manner using a PA.

Eoin Heneghan recently completed the Level 9 Master of Science in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy in the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (IICP). This contemporary Master’s was developed in conjunction with Professor John McLeod and provides an extensive understanding of both pluralism and research. Eoin explored an integrative approach with a focus on pluralistic counselling and psychotherapy that embraced and considered multiple causes and responses to psychological distress in his training. Prior to this, he completed the Bachelor of Science Degree in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy in IICP. His work as a trainee therapist in the Blanchardstown Counselling Centre for the last two years has enabled him to integrate his pluralistic training to meet the needs of modern society with his clients.

Eoin currently works as a primary school teacher and has worked in St. Patrick’s NS, Dublin 15, for the last sixteen years and has passion in the area of children’s wellbeing and mental health. This led him to examine if early intervention (EI) can alter a child’s life direction when they are in primary school and the importance of having a pluralistic approach to EI in his dissertation. As Eoin has finished his research, he understands that there are

still more questions to ask than to answer relating to whether EI can alter a child’s pathway in life. There are numerous avenues to pursue in his research, and the findings are plentiful. When he thinks about trying to answer more of the questions about EI’s in the years ahead, it excites and invigorates him.

Eileen Finnegan is a psychotherapist and supervisor who is accredited with MIACP, MIAHIP, MEAP, MEAC, and FTAI. Eileen has studied extensively over the past thirty years, achieving an MSc in Systemic/Family Therapy. She is a qualified Supervisor, Forensic Psychotherapist, Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapist, Gestalt Psychotherapist, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist, Trauma-Informed Sensory Motor Trauma Therapist, and specialist in Dynamics of Attachment in Adult Life. She is also a Restorative Justice Practitioner, Mediator, and Private Consultant/Supervisor. Eileen is a lead therapist and program developer at the Faculty of IICP College Tallaght and is a guest lecturer at UCD. Eileen delivers lectures on all aspects of training for students, preparing them for the journey as professional Psychotherapists. Eileen has developed specialist programmes for children in Ireland and Croatia and trained teams in Croatia to deliver specialist intervention programs to children and families who have experienced complex trauma. Eileen is accredited with MIACP, MIAHIP, MEAP, MEAC, and FTAI as both a Psychotherapist and Supervisor. Eileen is the Vice Chair of FTAI (Family Therapy Association of Ireland) Additional qualifications include a Post Graduate Certificate in A.T.S.O. (Assessment and Treatment of Offenders) from Leicester University. Eileen is licensed to use the STATIC99R, STABLE, and ACUTE 2007 and the SOAP108 Case Formulation Planning, Armadillo, AIM 3, CASP-R following her training with the Justice Institute of British Columbia and Leonard Consultancy. Eileen is the past Chair of NOTA Ireland and past Chair of the Advisory Committee of Stop it Now Ireland. Eileen has delivered training on the many aspects of ‘sexual violence and family dynamics at conferences in Ireland and Europe. Eileen has published articles in therapeutic journals for SAGE, IACP, and IAHIP. Areas of Special Focus: Complex Trauma, Family Relationship Dynamics, Addiction, Couples, Adolescents, Forensics, and General Therapy Related Issues.

AvoidingtheBinary PluralisticPerspectiveson DiagnosticCategorisations ofPTSD WORKSHOP

RECORDED

Rationale:

Diagnoses are inherently binary, yet when it comes to human behaviour rarely is this the case. Experiences of post-traumatic stress are encapsulated in the diagnostic explanations of PTSD, prescribing behaviours and stipulating the conditions under which we have a ‘disorder’. As little in the reality of the therapy room is so clear-cut, this can leave practitioners wondering how to work effectively with such models, and in the systems that define them. In taking a pluralistic perspective to understanding the impact of traumatic events on individuals, a more nuanced approach to understanding post-traumatic stress is gained.

Aims:

This workshop aims to explore different understandings of PTSD and offers alternative ways of thinking and doing when working with those who have been so labelled. It exposes the ways in which the evolution of the diagnostic models of psychological trauma have been shaped by socio-cultural and political processes, examining the pathologising nature of the current diagnostic models, and identifying their failure to adequately account for the breadth of factors that can influence human behaviours. Consideration of alternative cultural and psychosocial perspectives allow a positioning of clients and their experiences that values diversity and individuality when working with psychological trauma.

Learning Outcomes:

To be able to challenge assumptions inherent in the current diagnostic conceptualisations of post-traumatic stress

To offer an alternative non-pathologising way of positioning clients experiences and the effects of post-traumatic events.

To deepen an appreciation of the variety of ways in which post-traumatic stress can be attended to in therapy.

Christina is a Chartered Academic Psychologist, Coaching Psychologist, Psychotherapist, and Researcher. She is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society (BPS) and a Chartered Scientist. She is a senior practitioner member of the BPS Register of Psychologists Specialising in Psychotherapy, and on the BPS Register of Applied Psychology Practice Supervisors. In addition, she is a registered Psychotherapist with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), a member of EMDR UK and Ireland, and an accredited member of Emotional Freedom Technique international (EFTi).

Christina's academic, organisational and individual work spans 30 years of working towards an enhanced understanding of concepts and interventions around the subjects of mental health, well-being and psychological trauma. During this time, Christina has led many projects and initiatives to both theoretically provide a deeper appreciation of the complexities of these subject areas, and to improve the lives of those exposed to adverse life events. Her work has been devoted to the development and dissemination of evidencebased practice and sound ethical and professional standards in these areas, and Christina has led and developed the UK’s only evidence-based trauma training programmes in higher education. Christina is a leading figure in education in this field in the UK.

She has developed and promoted protocols of evidence-based practice, including developing the UK’s only competency-based framework for practitioners working with psychological trauma and best trauma informed practice in the wider psychological professions. Her work has both added value to the understanding of this field and has led to strategic and effective change in areas of practice.

Her research and clinical work are in individual's experience of PTSD and Complex Trauma, as well as in diagnosis and assessment. Christina's research takes a psychosocial approach to better understand the wider context in which individual's experience of trauma occurs and the meanings they draw from this. Her recent book, Discourses of Psychological Trauma, provides a critique of the medical model and offers practitioners non-pathologising ways of thinking and responding to those suffering from the effects of adverse life events and was one of the publisher's bestselling titles for that year.

Other research interests involve methodological innovation and research into individuals’ narratives of psychological trauma. Christina has peer reviewed publications in both the field of psychological trauma and in innovation and creative use of methodologies exploring the experience of those affected by psychological trauma. She has been both an accepted and invited speaker to many national and international conferences in her research areas.

Rationale:

AGriefRitualforRacial Wounding

The systemic violence of racism can be viewed as collective betrayal. When betrayal is experienced by a couple, in therapy, co-creating grieving space is a crucial step towards healing and forming a new relationship.

Aims:

This workshop aims to co-create a mixed cultural heritage space for grieving racial wounds. It invites participants to engage in an embodied exercise of experimentation and discovery using creativity, grief, bodywork, ecopsychology and mixed heritage dialogue. This exercise will be based on Joanna Macey’s four stages of the Work that Reconnects, including Gratitude, Honouring our pain for the world, Seeing with fresh eyes, and finally, Going forth. It will be followed by a breakout session where participants who identify as white or BIPOC will reflect separately on the experience of the exercise and the feelings that arise from it. After this, participants will return to the main room for a collective rethinking and exploration of ways to recognise racism within the therapeutic profession and what new forms of relationship can be co-built.

Halina Pytlasinska Halina Pytlasinska

Trang Dang Trang Dang

Learning Outcomes:

We hope that by the end of the workshop, participants will be able to recognise signs and traces of racism and its traumatic impacts, especially on brown and black bodies as one way of beginning to face and address the racism that is inherent in therapy. The session will provide opportunity to experiment and discover ways to investigate and acknowledge racism within the therapeutic profession, through using creativity, grief, bodywork, ecopsychology and mixed cultural heritage dialogue.

Halina Pytlasinska I am a relationship and counselling therapist for couples and individuals, supervisor and trainer, in private practice in the Chilterns. As an active member of Climate Psychology Alliance, I facilitate workshops for academics and mental health practitioners around climate and ecological crisis and decolonising issues. During a thirty five year career I have trained counsellors in college settings, and as a therapist worked with people from all walks of life for charities and universities including Relate and Royal Holloway University of London.

Dr Trang Dang is Communications Coordinator at the Climate Psychology Alliance and Visiting Lecturer in Art and Media Technology at the University of Southampton. Trang’s research explores contemporary climate fiction, Indigenous knowledges, and eco-philosophy.

WorkingwithMale SurvivorsofSexual Violence WORKSHOP

This workshop will be focused on working with male survivors of sexual violence, an overview of Mankind UK as an organisation and the outcomes of the service.

This will include the psychoeducation provided to clients, qualitative and quantitively data gathered from service users and counsellors experience of this client group.

Kathryn Stevens MA Psychology, MSc Counselling, MBACP (Accred)Kat Stevens is a dedicated counselling professional, specialising in working with survivors of sexual violence since 2014. With an MA in Psychology and an MSc in Counselling she is currently working within Mankind UK, providing online therapy to male survivors of sexual abuse.As well as this Kat works privately as a supervisor and therapist, with a special interest in working online and EMDR therapy.

She has previously conducted research on integrating yoga as an adjunct to trauma-focused counselling, and is working within the Open University on their Counselling and Forensic Psychology BSc.

A Collegiate Conversation Barriers to Therapists Engaging with Research

Rationale:

Anecdotal evidence suggests therapists face barriers to engaging with and in research. This matters because it risks excluding a diverse range of therapist voices in framing and conducting research and this in turn limits the evidence base for working with clients who have experienced trauma. Barriers might include the following: finance, confidence, lack of connections and access points, perceived discouragement or indifference from those within parts of the community… and more

Practicalities:

An hour-long session facilitated by Helen Smith and Briony Martin, to include opening remarks from the facilitators, followed by an open discussion among participants, and concluding by drawing together action points and the invitation to form an ongoing group to explore ways to reduce barriers for therapists engaging with research.

Briony Martin Briony Martin

Helen Smith gained her diploma in integrative counselling through the progression route at the local college. Her continuous curiosity has helped her gain connection to others in the counselling & psychotherapy community. She runs her own private practice alongside working for a young people's agency, where she draws on her previous experiences of youth work & being a foster carer.

Briony Martin, Dep Chair of PPN, DProf student at Chester University; Helen Smith, member of PPN, trauma therapist with lived experience of facing barriers to research Briony Martin is an integrative psychotherapist and supervisor, and Deputy Chair of the Pluralistic Practice Network. After a long break from academia she is now studying for a Professional Doctorate in Psychotherapy and Counselling Studies at Chester University, focusing on anti-racism in therapy and therapy training. The experience has been a steep learning curve and has raised her awareness around the difficulties and barriers faced by therapists in becoming research-active.

WorkingwithPersonal, Collective&Transgenerational TraumaandResilienceUsing CreativeMethods WORKSHOP

A key principle of pluralistic practice is the understanding that that therapy is likely to be more helpful when individualised (Smith, K. de la Prida.A. (2021). Understanding the unique and idiosyncratic ways that trauma has impacted each individual client can help to inform effective pluralistic practice. This is an experiential workshop which explores ways of working to identify the impact and longevity of traumatic experiences, personal, collective and transgenerational, and to help clients identify their strengths and internal resources. This workshop will focus on the particular relevance of creative methods to working with trauma. Participants will be asked to engage in a reflective experiential exercise and will be invited to share their experience and work in small groups in breakout rooms. I will share my own personal experience and case study material to illustrate, and participants will be able to download a useful visual worksheet resource they can use in practice with clients.

Aims:

This is an experiential workshop designed explore ways of identifying, understanding and working with the impact and longevity of traumatic experiences, personal, collective and transgenerational, and to help clients identify their strengths and internal resources.

Ani de la Prida Ani de la Prida

Learning Outcomes:

To help to develop awareness of how personal, collective and generational trauma can impact clients in unique and individual ways.

To understand the particular relevance of creative methods to working with trauma.

To use the Trauma Tree resource tool to engage in self-reflection to explore the effects of trauma, including strengths and personal internal resources.

Ani is a psychotherapist, and creative arts counsellor who brings a pluralistic person-centred philosophy to her work. She is passionate about creative arts approaches in therapy and has over twenty years’ experience working with children, young people, adults and groups. Ani is the founder of the Association for Person Centred Creative Arts (APCCA) where she is also an editor of the APCCA Journal. She has worked at various London universities and is now course director at APCCA Training.

Her research interests include creative arts therapy, digital media in therapy and pluralistic practice. Recent publications include; Person-Centred Creative Arts Therapies in The Tribes of the Person-Centred Nation (2024) PersonCentred Creative Arts Therapies in The Handbook of Person-Centred Psychotherapy and Counselling (2024) The Pluralistic Therapy Primer (PCCS Books 2021) What Works in Counselling and Psychotherapy Relationships (BACP 2020) Referrals and Indications for Therapy in The Handbook of Counselling Children and Young People (Sage, 2018)

Website www.apcca.org.uk

Social media

X @anidelaprida

Instagram @anidelaprida

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ani-de-la-prida-43026a44

Facebook :

https://www.facebook.com/groups/associationpersoncentredcreativearts/

NOT RECORDED

Working Pluralistically with Spiritual Emergencies

This workshop aims to help counsellors develop an understanding of spiritual emergencies and how to work with clients who experience this.

When intense spiritual experiences become overwhelming and cannot be integrated, they can lead to severe psychological distress. These experiences are often called spiritual emergencies. Trauma can be a precursor or trigger for spiritual emergencies, develop because of challenges processing the experience, and /or be a result of inappropriate interventions. Psychiatry pathologises these experiences as psychotic, while experiencers themselves often interpret them as a valuable or necessary part of their spiritual path. It is difficult to for experiencers to navigate these opposing frameworks, and to find places where they feel heard and supported. When clients share such experiences in counselling, therapists can feel overwhelmed.

Counsellors will be guided in how to begin to develop competencies in working with spiritual emergencies through explanations of important concepts, relevant research, case studies, discussions, and practical exercises. Participants will gain background knowledge, develop reflexivity about their own spirituality and about personal challenges in engaging with this topic, and explore how to

Christine Kupfer Christine Kupfer

Lorraine Tolmie Lorraine Tolmie

support their clients by following key principles based on pluralistic counselling.

The first part of this workshop will explain concepts, frameworks and research into clients’ experiences of spiritual crises and of what might help. We will discuss how we can acknowledge the value and truth of clients’ understandings, help clients make sense of their experiences and to build bridges between different frameworks. We will include experiencers’ views of what has been helpful to them and discuss a range of possible interventions. Small group exercises and discussion will highlight practical ways that clients can be given the best support possible.

Dr Christine Kupfer (Abertay University & Lorraine Tolmie (Abertay University) Dr Christine Kupfer is a pluralistic therapist, a researcher, and a lecturer in Counselling & Psychotherapy at Abertay University, Dundee. She holds Masters in Social and Medical Anthropology, Psychology, and Counselling, and has a PhD in Education Sciences. She has done research on therapists’ perspectives on working with clients with spiritually transformative experiences; children’s mental health in India; a citizen science project on depression; ethnographic work with Ayurveda patients to understand their conceptualisations of health and healing; research on Rabindranath Tagore; and on the “Dark Side of Meditation”.

Lorraine Tolmie is a PhD research student at Abertay University exploring the role of therapy following spiritually transformative experiences. She has trained in hypnotherapy, Internal Family Systems and constellation therapy.

Workingwith LoveinIntimate Relationships PAPER

Intimate relationships with significant others are culturally constructed as a core adult life task, something providing a scaffold for life once found. It is often difficulty in these relationships that emerges in the therapy room as part of, or indeed central to problems in living. ‘Love,’ however we define it, is typically invoked as the tie that binds, the glue holding people together relationally. Gaining clarity with such a vast, slippery concept is challenging, but pluralism’s commitment to epistemic fluidity presents distinct advantage.

This workshop expands on a project developed during the MSc Counselling programme at Abertay University. It aims to explore different psychological and psychotherapeutic perspectives on love relevant to therapeutic practice, to support pluralists to think across a range of conceptual frameworks and enhance capacities for building shared understanding. If part of our therapeutic role is to support clients to reach increased clarity and insight, we must ourselves as practitioners attempt to do so with the most challenging concepts.

Joe Harney is a Chartered Psychologist (academic) with the British Psychological Society, and a recent graduate of Abertay University's MSc Counselling programme. He is an experienced teacher of psychology in various educational settings in the UK, and has past lives as both a creative practitioner with music and sound, and community outreach work with vulnerable young adults. Joe has just relocated to Denmark, where he is establishing a private practice and settling into a new life phase with his long term partner. He remains a keen musician, and loves learning about food, languages, and the beauty of the world's myriad cultures.

Joseph Harney Joseph Harney

Traumaand Existence

The paper will provide an overview of prominent approaches to trauma in existential-humanistic psychology focused on ideas of existential shattering of worldviews. These will be critiqued and built upon using existential analytic and phenomenological approaches considering the ways trauma de-anchors our existence and leads to an incomprehensibility of existence. Finally, it will delve into three specific methods of working with experiences of trauma from an existential phenomenological perspective and demonstrate how these can have trans-modality applications.

It would be of interest to delegates seeking to understand what of existence is confronted through interpersonal traumas. It will end with a discussion of ontography, reflexivity and daimonics. Ontography is the therapeutic mapping and exploration of the existential structures the worlds the person lives in, what was confronted through trauma, and how this has been incorporated into modes of existing (or the ways in which we exist in the world). Reflexivity focuses on how we can come to understand the existential questions, dilemmas, and tensions we live out in relation to a traumatic confrontation with existence. Finally, the daimonic explore the destructive and constructive forces we encounter in ourselves and others through trauma and how these can be approached to support growth and healing.

Marc Boaz Marc Boaz

Marc Boaz is an existential psychotherapist, a visiting Professor of Mental Health and Psychotherapy at the University of Northampton, UK, a former member of the UK Trauma Council how's by Anna Freud, and teaches Critical Psychopathology at the New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling (NSPC), UK.

He is an author of works on interpersonal trauma, childhood adversity and neurodivergence.

Pluralistic Psychotherapist’s and Counsellor’s Experiences of Working with Actively Suicidal Clients

A Qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Background:

Clients presenting as suicidal has been widely recognized as one of the most challenging presenting issues for psychotherapists and counsellors. There is a wealth of literature exploring risk assessment, collaboration, goals, tasks, methods, shared decision making and client preferences employed in therapy with this presenting issue. Yet, no literature explicitly explores combining these approaches or provides a framework that integrates them. Working with actively suicidal clients as a Pluralistic Psychotherapist and Counsellor (PCP) has not been thoroughly examined to date even though this framework and philosophy for therapy combines many of the aforementioned approaches. Therefore, it is imperative that ways of working safely with this presenting issue, for both the client and the practitioner, are explored and researched through the lens of PCP.

Practice Focus:

Working with actively suicidal/high risk clients, exploring the use of goals, tasks, methods, outcome measures and evidence based practice.

Method:

A qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of PCP with actively suicidal clients was conducted via four semi-structed recorded interviews. Four participants were recruited purposively. Four themes and two subthemes were identified and explored. This research was approved by IICP College and IICP College Ethics Committee on 11th October 2022 as communicated by email from Dr. Noel O’ Connor, Head of Academic Studies, IICP College, Killinarden Enterprise Park, Tallaght, Dublin 24, D24 TKC7, Ireland. Phone: 00353862421153 Email: noel@iicp.ie

Leo Muckley Leo Muckley

Findings:

The findings showed PCP to be a robust holistic approach to actively suicidal clients that is safe for both client and practitioner. Furthermore, the results point towards the need for further research into the idea that PCP is useful when working with actively suicidal clients in line with recommended best practice from the client’s perspective.

Implications for Research and Practice:

The pluralistic approach can be a robust and effective approach to working with actively suicidal clients. PCP with this client cohort maintains ethics and values while promoting client autonomy through collaboration, preference exploration, feedback and empirically based outcome measurement. Engaging client preferences and cultural resources fosters deeply human and authentic connections in the therapeutic relationship. Using outcome and process measures can be challenging and requires creativity but supports a therapeutic relationship inclusive of risk exploration. PCP practitioners did not report the fears, burdens and lack of felt safety working with this cohort as has previously been reported in the literature. Policy could be improved through engaging in a pluralistic approach to suicide. Further research is recommended which could be mixed methods and include clients as well as practitioners.

Leo Muckley, Psychotherapist and Counsellor, IICP College, Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland Leo Muckley is a Pluralistic Psychotherapist and Counsellor with inperson practices in Glengarriff and Skibbereen, West Cork, Ireland and he also works online. He has a particular expertise and interest in working with clients challenged by presenting issues around childhood abuse, suicide and trauma. Leo’s research into Pluralistic practitioner’s experiences of working with actively suicidal clients was published in the Counselling and Psychotherapy Research journal in May 2024.

He frequently designs and facilitates bespoke talks, plenary sessions and tutorials for colleges and organisations on his areas of interest. Leo has a passion for mindfulness and meditation and runs a unique “Practical Mindfulness" 8 week course online which is affordable and can be used as

CPD. Leo enjoys writing and currently writes a monthly mental health column for the West Cork People newspaper. He is currently involved in a research team working on a paper regarding relational depth and he hopes to continue his own research journey in the near future to research client’s experiences of psychotherapy and counselling for challenges around suicide.

Leo has found that client’s voices are rarely given a platform in policy making which is frequently based on research. He strongly believes in the power of disseminating knowledge and research and the value which lived experiences can bring to the same.

Trauma-Informed Practice

Exploring the Potential for Unintended Harm

Past experience can have an impact on present-day functioning, although the nature of this connection is rarely direct or inevitable. Increasingly, this relationship between past and present is understood through a lens of trauma. Although it has become such a dominant feature of policy, professional practice and everyday talk, the concept of trauma remains ill-defined. Trauma-informed care has not been shown to offer more than any model of good care should offer and the evidence-base for trauma-informed practice is, at best, inconclusive.

Clearly, those who promote trauma perspectives do so from a position that wants to see more compassionate responses to people’s suffering however there has been a lack of critical attention to the many critiques of trauma that have emerged in recent years. There is a risk that a predominant focus on trauma may construct the kind of psychological conditions it professes to respond to and could act to diminish the importance of everyday supportive social networks, care relationships and, ultimately, the innate capacity we all have to move on in our lives.

This presentation explores the rise of trauma as the predominant lens through which to view distress and suffering and presents implications for practitioners in a range of settings. It will argue that the failure of the trauma discourse to take a more social view of human suffering acts to forestall more effective and lasting solutions and limits pluralistic ways of thinking and responding.

Sebastian Monteux Sebastian Monteux

Mr Sebastian Monteux, Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing, Abertay University Sebastian Monteux is a registered mental health nurse and lecturer in mental health nursing at Abertay University.

He has previously worked in Scotland and the Netherlands in the NHS, in the fields of local authority residential child care, adult social care and learning disability, and trained as a Steiner Waldorf School teacher. Most recently, prior to lecturing, he worked in the North of Scotland CAMHS inpatient unit, Dundee.

ExploringWhitenesswithin theContextofAntiRacist PsychotherapyEducation

ANarrativeInquiryinto Therapists'Experiences

Exploring Whiteness in the context of antiracist psychotherapy education: A narrative inquiry into therapists’ experiences.Despite years of commitment to diversifying and becoming more inclusive, the psychological professions remain dominated by white members with ongoing problems of recruitment and retention of people of the global majority as a concern.

A long history of inequity in training, practice and psychotherapy research has shaped these problems. Concerns about racism and racial trauma were illuminated following the onset of the global pandemic, the murder of George Floyd in the USA, and the re-surgency of the Black Lives Matters movement. At this time, all the professional bodies re-committed to tackling racism within the profession. In an effort to deepen understandings of the construct of whiteness, an in-depth narrative inquiry was undertaken to explore counsellors’ and psychotherapists’ experiences of whiteness within antiracist psychotherapy education, an under-researched area within the profession. With a focus on social justice, qualitative, semi-structured interviews were carried out with six culturally diverse, experienced counsellors/psychotherapists from varying modalities.

Using Gilligan’s (1982) Listening Guide as a method of data analysis, responses to experiences of whiteness produced fourteen ‘contrapuntal’ voices across the group of six participants. Themes associated with the different experiences of whiteness were evident with the most significant being ‘whiteness as violence’ experienced by all participants of the global majority. A major finding is that

Frances Basset Frances Basset

voices that resist, expose, acknowledge and disrupt whiteness are linked to hope, whereas voices of compromise, assimilation, ambivalence, and ‘pushback’ are associated with hopelessness. It follows, therefore, that the importance of ending the racial trauma that colleagues of the global majority experience cannot be overstated. Specific recommendations for psychotherapy education are offered.

Frances Basset MBACP (Senior Accred), DPsych Candidate, Metanoia Institute Frances Basset has worked for over twenty years as a Psychosynthesis Psychotherapist and integrative supervisor and educator. She has worked in both the voluntary sector and in private practice. Frances is currently completing her doctorate at the Metanoia Institute.

Her research explores whiteness and white identity in the context of antiracist psychotherapy education. She is a senior accredited member of the BACP and student member of the UKCP. Prior to her career as a psychotherapist, Frances was a Senior Lecturer at the University of Brighton where she designed and led degree and master’s level courses on anti-oppressive practice across a range of health care professions.

Frances currently co-facilitates four times yearly, ‘examining whiteness’ groups in Brighton and Hove. These groups are open to all psychotherapists and counsellors who want to actively address the injustices and inequalities of racism within the profession through personal and collective work on white identity, power, privilege, and complicity.

Bridgingthe EmotionalGapin MultilingualTherapy

Multilingual therapy is a widely studied theme and is becoming more critical in the context of globalisation. Language barriers and emotional gaps have concentrated the attention of practitioners and researchers on developing a more inclusive linguistic environment that enhances the therapeutic alliance, therapy outcomes, and clients’ and professional experiences engaged in multilingual therapy.

My personal experience as a Master’s student in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy and as a psychologist in a foreign country ignited my motivation for the present paper to understand deeply language barriers and emotional connection with clients.

This research study describes communicational aspects that affect the therapeutic alliance and explores problem-solving skills proposed by research according to three main scenarios: monolingual therapists working with multilingual clients, multilingual therapists working with monolingual and multilingual clients, and multilingual therapists working with multilingual clients switching languages.

New strategies to work in multicultural therapy are presented from a pluralistic approach to therapy. A de-centralisation of the therapist from their preferred worldview to engage with the client’s view and the adoption of relational ethics set the foundations for specific strategies that cover how the therapist introduces

Rocio Llopart Rocio Llopart

Rocio is a Licensed Psychologist specializing in Systemic Family Therapy. She brings a global perspective to her work, having earned her first qualification in Argentina and her Master's (MSc) in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy from the Institute of Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy (IICP) in Dublin, where she has lived since 2019.

Rocio is passionate about learning and has experience as an assistant professor and research collaborator. She has a strong foundation in family dynamics, having trained at the prestigious Sant Pau School in Barcelona and worked extensively with families. Rocio is skilled at supporting individuals and families facing a variety of challenges, including anxiety, depression, grief, eating disorders, and relationship issues.

Her recent migration experience fuels her interest in the role of language and culture in therapy. Rocio is a graduate member of the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) and a student member of the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (IACP).

HowtoIdentify WeightStigmaand AvoidFurtherHarm

We live in a diet culture that perpetuates weight stigma and weight-based discrimination which inevitably affects our relationship with food and our bodies. The detrimental effects of weight stigma on both physical and mental health are well-documented.

However sometimes it is hard to recognise the impact of weight bias on people’s behaviors and the many different ways through which individuals try to cope with stigma. If we are not aware of our belief system, it is quite possible to interpretate clients’ attitudes based on our own undetected bias. One of the most fundamental goals of this presentation is to increase awareness of weight bias and suggest ways to support clients without causing harm. It also aims to act as a kind reminder for the participants to take care of themselves, too.

The first part will explain how weight stigma can cause or exacerbate health problems and will describe some of the most common mechanisms that people develop in order to cope with the chronic stress related to weight stigmatising experiences.

The second part of the presentation will focus on how practitioners can identify internalisation of weight bias and help clients develop adaptive coping mechanisms to face stigma. There will also be a demonstration of the most common potentially harmful practices and key steps to avoid further harming.

This presentation intends to cultivate a compassionate approach to weight stigma and inspire sharing of experiences and exploring different strategies to eliminate weight bias and address clients’ unique needs.

Konstantina Katsana Konstantina Katsana

My name is Konstantina Katsana, and I am an anti-diet dietitian based in Greece. I hold a Bachelor's and a Master's degree from Harokopio University of Athens. I advocate for Intuitive Eating, supporting individuals affected by chronic dieting and weight stigma, as well as families helping their children build healthy relationships with food and their bodies.

Together with my partner, I represented my country in an Erasmus+ project, co-developing Breaking Weight Bias, an educational tool for health professionals. This material is specifically designed to address weight bias, providing practical strategies to eliminate it in clinical settings. My vision is to promote a culture that respects body diversity and treats everyone with dignity.

TheCreativity Gathering WORKSHOP

This experiential workshop invites you to step into the heart of the Creativity Gathering, a unique community of creative therapists. We’ll explore the essence of the Gathering, share how we experience it and delve into our understanding of creativity within the therapeutic context. With a focus on the theme of trauma, we’ll discuss how creativity can offer a powerful pathway for healing and transformation. You’ll have the opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue and exchange insights with fellow practitioners.Following the panel discussion, we’ll break into smaller groups for a deeper exploration of creative approaches to working with trauma. This is your chance to actively participate in the “dance” of shared learning and co-creation that defines the Gathering.

Learning Outcomes:

Gain first-hand experience of participating in the Creativity Gathering. Discover creative ways of working with trauma through knowledge exchange and experiential learning.

Connect with a community of therapists dedicated to exploring creative approaches to therapy.

Whether you’re a seasoned Gatherer or new to our community, join us for this enriching workshop that celebrates the transformative power of creativity in the face of trauma.

The Creativity Gathering is a vibrant online community where therapists of all backgrounds and experience levels come together to explore the transformative power of creativity in therapeutic practice.

We offer a welcoming and inclusive space for open dialogue, shared learning, and the cultivation of collective creativity.Through monthly online meetings and special events, we delve into creative methods for working with clients, fostering a democratic “cèilidh” atmosphere where everyone's voice is valued. With rotating co-hosts and a focus on specific themes, we encourage a dynamic exchange of ideas and experiences.

Whether you're a seasoned practitioner seeking fresh inspiration or a trainee eager to expand your therapeutic toolkit, the Creativity Gathering provides a supportive environment to connect, learn, and grow.

‘ALifeinParts’

Co-researchingwithEllieo theEffectsofTraumainH LifeusingaCollaborative NarrativeApproach WORKSHOP

Susan Dale Susan Dale

The aim is to show how Ellie and I worked together using a collaborative narrative approach alongside ideas from Internal Family Systems (IFS) to understand and navigate the dissociative effects of trauma. Workshop participants will be invited to explore how they may experience, or work with their own ‘parts’ and consider if this insight is helpful in their work with clients who are trauma-experienced. Space will then be given to explore how workshop participants may wish to develop their own collaborative approach to co-researching the effects of trauma on people’s lives.

Learning Outcomes:

Insight into client experiences of therapy

Development of personal and professional understandings of dissociation and IFS theory of ‘parts’

Confidence to develop a collaborative approach that respond to the unique needs of individual clients who are trauma-experienced.

Dr Susan Dale MBACP Accre Susan Dale lives and works in the Scottish Highlands. Alongside her therapeutic practice, she has undertaken many collaborative research and writing projects and has published widely. She trained as a counsellor in the 1990’s and then went on to undertake a Masters and completed a Doctorate in 2009 focusing on narrative practices at Bristol University.

Working Therapeutically withNightmares WORKSHOP

Rationale:

Nightmares, especially recurrent ones linked to trauma, anxiety and other psychological issues, can be deeply distressing for clients and significantly impact their ability to function effectively. Therapists often feel ill equipped to help clients when troubling dreams are brought to therapy. This workshop will introduce therapists to the nature of troubling dreams, their links to trauma and outline effective strategies to help clients process and alleviate the burden of nightmares when presented.

Workshop Aims:

Help therapists understand the link between nightmares, trauma and anxiety. Introduce strategies for working with nightmares/troubling dreams. Demonstrate some techniques for working with troubling dream material when presented.

Learning outcomes:

Understand the difference between dreams, nightmares and night-terrors. Understand the link between nightmares and trauma. Learn the key ethical considerations when working with nightmares. Learn about strategies for assisting clients with nightmares. Develop basic skills for working with troubling dreams.

Mike Hackett Mike Hackett

Mike Hackett, MIACP, IASD Mike Hackett is a Pluralistic Psychotherapist and Supervisor based in Dublin, Ireland and is Accredited with the Irish Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy. Mike left counsellor training and education after 11 years to pursue his passion for private practice and the dream. During that time, Mike wrote and delivered short and long programmes aimed at equipping therapists to work with dreams in the therapeutic context.

Mike's work in the dream in clinical practice has been published in the Irish Journal of Counselling & Psychotherapy as well as the International Association for the Study of Dreams. He is currently the Regional Representative for the Republic of Ireland for the International Association for the Study of Dreams.

PluralisticPrinciples BenefitsClientOutcomes

viatheAthollApproach ACaseStudy

The Atholl Approach is a trauma-informed framework which is underpinned by pluralistic practice and provides the blueprints needed to support trauma survivors at an organisational level. It highlights that often an organisation’s ability to build a therapeutic relationship, and not just that of the clinicians, is taken for granted and is in fact is a key ingredient in supporting survivors to heal from trauma.

The Approach outlines 9 principles and provides practical steps which, if embedded into the development and design of a service at an organisational level, can improve client outcomes for survivors of trauma. The Approach incorporates elements of pluralistic practice and frames them within Hermans 3 stage trauma recovery model.

This paper presents a single case study which explores the organisational relationship between Trauma Healing Together and a client who sought therapeutic help for underlying trauma. It provides an insight into how clinicians involved in service development can increase client engagement and reduce drop-out rates by applying pluralism in the form of The Atholl Approach.When interviewed about their experience, the client rated highly on organisational relationship as being a contributory factor in their reduction of trauma symptoms and expressed that they felt more positive about their future.

Full consent was given by the client to write this case study.The Atholl Approach can be easily applied in various contexts and be used to shape service design and delivery in order improve outcomes for trauma survivors across the board.

Roxanne Kerr Msc, Trauma Healing Together Roxanne is an experienced and qualified clinical certified trauma specialist with a master’s in counselling from Abertay University and a certificate in complex trauma and dissociation from the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation Over the last 8 years, she has successfully worked with trauma survivors including extensive work with survivors of childhood sexual abuse and individuals with mental health conditions such as bipolar and schizophrenia.

As well as being university educated, she has extensive training in the trauma field which was delivered by reputable trauma specialists in the USA and the UK. She is also trained in Crisis Management and is member of the British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapy.

Roxanne founded Trauma Healing Together, a charity which supports trauma survivors with counselling and wellbeing support, as she felt there was more that could be done to support those struggling with symptoms of trauma and wanted to make a sustainable change .

OvercomingBirthTraumawithinthe PluralisticFramework

ACase-StudyonDeveloping andIntegratingaMultiplicity ofTasksandMethodsto MeetSpecificGoals

Tom

Research within the field of counselling and psychotherapy should identify the potential pathways in which people can change (Cooper and McLeod, 2011). This paper aims to demonstrate how a multiplicity of therapeutic tasks and methods, applied within the pluralistic framework, can support the goal of overcoming birth-trauma.

In evidencing the therapeutic interplay of specific therapist activities and specific client activities towards the accomplishment of defined tasks and goals, it seeks to contribute to the pluralistic arena a range of methods useful for those requiring help with trauma. This reflective case-study documents the first 10 sessions between myself and a client who presented with birth-trauma. Client details have been fully anonymised.

Regular professional supervision was accessed during our work together. My client responded well to a variety of methods, enabling the completion of tasks specific to different needs at different times. The standard EMDR protocol and related resources (such as the future template and connecting with a source of comfort), provided the most profound methods for change. Synthesis of EMDR and the pluralistic framework initiated diverse client and therapist activities –facilitating the attainment of life and therapy goals. Meta-dialogue promoted continued clarity and consent, also identifying when changes to goals, tasks and methods were necessary. This work adds to the psychotherapeutic field a range of efficacious pluralistic methods in dealing with trauma.

Tom Meaney

Meaney

Also, it could provide impetus for potential investigation of EMDR practitioners working across orientations to meet evolving client need. Moreover, as this casestudy highlights the natural compatibility of EMDR within the pluralistic framework, scope for research into the concept of ‘pluralistic-informed EMDR therapy’ exists.

Tom Meaney - accredited member of the BACP, member of EMDR Association UK and Lecturer in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy at University of Central Lancashire Tom Meaney MBACP (accred). Based in Morecambe, Lancashire. Originally trained in the Person-Centred approach, I have further training in CBT, Solution-Focused therapy and EMDR. Having worked as a psychotherapist in a variety of settings (NHS, charitable, private organisations and higher education) I currently run a very small private practice.

I am also a lecturer on the Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy undergraduate degree at the University of Central Lancashire.

TheProblemwith TraumainCaringfor Unaccompanied AsylumSeekers

This presentation will offer a broadly autoethnographic account of the presenter’s experiences as a social work academic and foster carer for Bona, an unaccompanied asylum seeker (and through him, providing support to other asylum-seeking boys all of whom were Muslim).

The experiences of these boys would by any definition be considered traumatic. Perhaps understandably, given the totalising nature of the trauma narrative, my wife and I were faced with an assumption by doctors and social workers that Bona and the other boys we came into contact with would be traumatised. But trauma is really only manifest in its symptoms, such as flashbacks or night terrors. There was no sign of these. The backgrounds of my wife and I (both experienced social workers and social work academics) gave us the confidence to question the reductionist assumptions of a trauma narrative.

We understood our task in caring for Bona against a wider backdrop of global movement and the political context to this. From this position, we sought to provide care that offered cultural safety, recognising the centrality within this of religious beliefs and practices; the experiences of young people growing up in conditions of liminality, negotiating two very different cultures; the inadequacy of current social work responses but, most importantly, the importance of everyday care and relationships and the need for a curious and reflexive orientation from caregivers.

Mark Smith Mark Smith

Mark Smith is Professor of Social Work at the University of Dundee. He has a practice background in residential child care and through that developed an interest in ideas of care as an everyday humanistic activity. For the past seven years, he and his family have fostered an unaccompanied asylum-seeking young man (now a refugee) and through that have close contact with other young refugees. All of these have had experiences that would be considered traumatic. However, none of them show any signs of being traumatised. With colleagues, Mark has published critiques of current conceptual assumptions about trauma. He will outline some of these critiques and apply them to his experiences of helping young refugees.

Mark Smith Professor of Social Work School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law Division of Education and Society University of DundeeScotland

Latest book: Smith M. (2024 - paperback edition) Boys’ Stories of Their Time in a Residential School ‘The Best Years of Our Lives’ Routledge

Single Session Therapies PAPER

Why and How One-at-a-Time Mindsets Are Effective

Single Session Therapy (SST) refers to an approach to therapy and counseling in which the therapist, together with the client, operates under the assumption that a single session may be sufficient, regardless of the problem or diagnosis. SST is receiving exponential attention from the entire field of psychotherapy and beyond. It is proposed as a method capable of placing the person, their needs, and their resources at the center. At the same time, it allows for the reduction of costs and burdens that therapy imposes on all involved parties (client, therapist, healthcare institutions, etc.).

There are various methods of SST, to the extent that it is primarily considered a mindset—a set of beliefs and attitudes for approaching therapy—supported by a more or less structured method. Together, these factors aim to maximize the possibility that the session may be the only one necessary. This presentation will provide an overview of the principles of SST, with references to research, investigation methods, and results. Additionally, some practical elements will be presented, useful for those interested in the practice of SST. There will also be references to the field of trauma.

Flavio

Dr Flavio Cannistrà, co-Founder Italian Center for Single Session Therapy Dr Flavio Cannistrà, PsyD, is co-founder of the Italian Center for Single Session Therapy and of the School of Specialization in Brief Systemic-Strategic Psychotherapies "ICNOS Institute", as well as Director of the IV International Symposium of SST, the first to be held in Europe. An expert in Brief Therapies, he has been a speaker at conferences in Europe, U.S.A., Australia and Japan.

Alongside his clinical activity, he studies and researches the processes and methods that make brief therapies effective and accessible, publishing in international journals.

Among his books: "Single Session Therapy. Principles and Practices" (with F. Piccirilli, translated into English and Japanese), "Brief Therapy Conversations" and "Single Session Therapies: Why and How One-At-A-Time Mindsets Are Effective" (with M. F. Hoyt).

Exploring the Experiences of Accredited Therapists Working with Clients Suffering from Disenfranchised Grief from Pet Bereavement in an Irish Context

Background:

The loss of a pet can be distressing for a person, especially if there is a close bond and the grief is not validated, leading to disenfranchised grief (DG).

Objective:

The study was to explore the experiences of accredited therapist working with clients suffering from DG from pet bereavement (PB) in an Irish context.

Method:

The researcher conducted a qualitative study using thematic analysis (TA) to identify themes to understand therapists’ experiences of client disenfranchisement due to pet bereavement. Using TA enabled the researcher to recognise, document, and understand themes and perceptions as they arise using Braun & Clarke’s approach.

Findings:

Three main themes emerged from the research: 1) what DG is. 2) Therapists’ perspective on the client experience of (DG) due to PB and 3) therapists’ experience of DG due to PB in clinical practice.

Michelle Cranny Michelle Cranny

Conclusion:

The research paper highlighted that pet bereavement and DG are intricate mixtures of processes and emotions. It also emphasises the fundamental role of supportive factors, such as therapy, particularly when grief is not acknowledged, leading to DG. The research also discovered that therapists are not adequately trained to work with PB and DG due to a lack of literature and research.

Michelle Cranny is a highly qualified therapist who brings a unique blend of expertise to her practice. Her professional interests range from trauma and addiction issues to grief and loss. She is fully accredited by the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (IACP). She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy from the Institute of Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy (IICP). Notably, she has recently completed a Master of Science in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy, developed in collaboration with Professor John McLeod and the IICP. This degree equipped her with a comprehensive understanding of pluralism and research. Michelle's training focused on an integrative approach to pluralistic counselling and psychotherapy, which considers multiple causes and responses to psychological distress. She has also obtained certificates in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Suicide Postvention, and Clinical Outcomes, again with the IICP.

Michelle's professional background also includes an important role in Human Resources Management, which provides her with valuable insights into human behaviour and group dynamics. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resources Management and Industrial Relations from the National College of Ireland. Michelle also serves as a lecturing assistant on the Introduction to Therapy Skills module, Advanced Therapy Skills module, and Addiction Module with the IICP.

She has a lifelong passion and commitment to rescuing and adopting animals, and her personal experience of pet bereavement and disenfranchised grief, a journey she has walked, sparked her curiosity about the potential impact it can have on individuals. Her knowledge, coupled with a significant increase in

clients presenting with grief and loss, especially disenfranchised grief due to pet bereavement, led her to complete her Master's research on exploring the experiences of accredited therapists working with clients suffering from disenfranchised grief from pet bereavement in an Irish context. This new research sheds light on the prevalence of this type of grief and provides valuable insights into how therapists can better support their clients. Her completion of this research evidences Michelle's commitment to ongoing learning and research, and her personal experience ensures that she approaches her work with empathy and understanding.

Research with Armed Forces Veterans Who have Experienced Trauma

Implications for Practice

Armed forces veterans can experience instances of trauma and adversity throughout their lives, as a consequence of being placed in situations that can be life-threatening, prolonged, and damaging. In particular, veterans experiencing combat are likely to report a high incidence of experiencing PTSD. There are just over 1.85 million UK armed forces veterans in England and Wales and 176,100 in Scotland. In Scotland, up to 2000 veterans are thought to seek mental health treatment each year.

In this presentation, I will be summarising key themes and learning from my own research into this area, and my review of published studies, in terms of implications for practice. The discussion will focus on presenting symptoms associated with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD), coping methods, barriers and facilitators to treatment-seeking among armed forces veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, understanding why veterans drop out of psychological therapy for trauma, and the perspectives of counselling psychologists working with veterans with complex post-traumatic stress disorder. This presentation aims to highlight considerations for working with the veteran population in a way that is informed by values of humanism and pluralism.

Lisa completed her MSc Counselling in pluralistic counselling at Abertay University. She has continued her professional development as a therapist, recently completing her doctorate in Counselling Psychology at Glasgow Caledonian University. Lisa’s research focus has been the effects of trauma on Armed Forces veterans. She has presented her research and workshops on working with trauma in various settings.

Lisa has therapeutic experience working in the third sector, NHS and private practice. Most of Lisa’s therapeutic experience has been working with people who have experienced trauma.

Lisa’s pluralistic approach to therapy is founded on humanistic values and relational practice, appreciates the value of different therapeutic interventions, incorporates clients’ strengths and preferences, and recognises societal and cultural influences on individual wellness.

APluralisticApproachtoTrauma

MultiplePerspectives

As a Paramedic in the National Ambulance Service in Ireland, I got to deal first hand with the mental health crisis here. The mental health services, like everywhere, weren't adequate. My colleagues also were suffering and a stigma stopping them from seeking help. Myself included. This lead me to becoming a Counsellor & Psychotherapist.

Through my journey to become a Psychotherapist

Megan Paula King Megan Paula King

I started to notice I was very much drawn to Trauma. Safety was always a huge aspect in my role as a Paramedic and my own personal history of abandonment and adoption. A felt sense of safety for the patients and myself were extremely important to me. This became my passion as I studied to become a Psychotherapist, even doing my thesis on this. I also have a passion for research into Polyvagal Theory in emergency medicine, as I saw a lot of similar presentations between patients I have treated as a Paramedic and clients I have worked with as a therapist. I'm a mother of 2, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a friend, a Paramedic, a Therapist and a human. I believe trauma is part of all of us and connection is key to working with it.

Lydia is a PhD student at Edge Hill University, with her key research interests in children’s mental health and wellbeing. With a focus on the psychological mechanisms of change, Lydia is dedicated to advancing research that promotes mental health in young populations, particularly within education. Lydia’s previous work has focused on motor stereotypy behaviour in children with intellectual disabilities. Her work aims to uncover the underlying factors that influence emotional and psychological development in children, contributing to better therapeutic practices and interventions. Outside of academia, Lydia is passionate about supporting families and young people with a range of disabilities to encourage their integration within the community, further enriching the holistic approach to mental health research.

Lydia Pringle Lydia Pringle

My name is Padraig O'Toole. I did my undergraduate in Counselling and Psychotherapy in ICHAS, Limerick Ireland where I attained a BA in Counselling Skills and Psychotherapy Studies.

I went on to achieve a BA(Hons) in Counselling and Psychotherapy at ICHAS Limerick. I am currently in my second year studying the MSc in Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy at the Padraig O'Toole Padraig O'Toole

Institute of Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy in Dublin Ireland. I have worked for many years in residential foster care units with young people in care system. I went on from working in the residential care system to working with Pieta House in Ireland. Here the clients presented with Suicidal Ideation, SelfHarm and Bereaved by suicide. The trauma experienced by clients I have worked with thus far has offered me the opportunity to understand the real time client needs and to help in whatever way possible.

I have had a keen interest in working with trauma over the course of my career. I am currently in private practice and identify as a Pluralistic Psychotherapist coming from a Existential Philosophical home. I look forward to contributing to further research in the field of trauma and pluralistic counselling and psychotherapy as my career progresses.