Alongside this was an equally strong drive to understand: to explore people’s inner worlds, their relationship with life, what shaped them, what troubled them, and why—both individually and collectively.

 

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At college, I developed a close relationship with my philosophy teacher, who was also a part-time psychotherapist. Around the age of 17, I began reading Freud and other foundational texts in psychology—a pursuit that has never ceased.

Driven by an insatiable curiosity about human beings and the workings of human psychology, I embarked on an extensive academic journey, first in Paris, where I was born and raised, and later in Edinburgh.

In Paris, I completed an MPhil and undertook four years of doctoral research at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), a world-renowned institution dedicated to advanced research in the human sciences.

Throughout my studies, I deliberately avoided narrow specialisation. I have always believed that understanding human beings requires a broad, integrated perspective. As such, I explored multiple disciplines—while maintaining a central focus on psychology, the social sciences, the history of ideas, and philosophy.

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Alongside my academic work, I began practising counselling part-time—initially as a volunteer, and later professionally from 2002.

At that time, my approach was somewhat unconventional: I worked with clients in their own homes. This proved to be deeply informative. Observing how people lived, in addition to hearing their experiences, offered valuable insights into their inner worlds and allowed me to tailor my therapeutic work with greater precision.

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After completing two undergraduate degrees, three master’s degrees, and two doctoral programmes, I undertook a four-year postdoctoral project in 2006, focusing on medical education and publishing research on human development and socialisation.

At the end of this period, I made a decisive shift away from academia to pursue formal vocational training in psychotherapy. My aim was to bring together three strands:
    •    my academic work
    •    my practical experience in counselling
    •    and a rigorous clinical training

I trained with Life Force in Colchester, a BACP-accredited institution known for the depth and breadth of its programme, which integrates the major psychotherapeutic traditions.

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Between 2013 and 2016, I worked with two counselling organisations: Havering and Brentwood Bereavement Service (HBBS) and Renew Counselling. I then established my private practice in Chelmsford in 2015.

I was advised that building a practice in a saturated field would be uncertain. However, my experience has been quite different. My practice quickly grew and continues to operate at full capacity.

I believe this reflects something specific in what I offer: a combination of genuine human presence and empathy, alongside a level of theoretical depth and understanding that goes beyond the passive application of learned models. My work is informed not only by established theories, but also by ongoing critical reflection, research and personal theoretical contribution.

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While my academic training, research, and professional experience have all been essential, I consider my personal journey to be equally formative.

My life has included significant challenges: prolonged illness in childhood, experiences of bullying, parental conflict, feelings of inadequacy, social isolation, cultural displacement, existential and spiritual questioning, anxiety and depression—including periods in which I seriously contemplated suicide—as well as multiple experiences of loss.

I have also spent many years in therapy myself, working with a wide range of practitioners.

These experiences have not only shaped me—they have transformed me. Over time, I have come to a place where I feel grounded in who I am, connected to meaning, and clear about what brings fulfilment.

This personal journey has provided something that no academic or professional training alone could offer: a lived understanding of suffering, change, and the process of becoming. It is this foundation that enables me to relate deeply to my clients, to understand the complexity of their experiences, and to accompany them in a way that is both grounded and effective.

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Relevant qualifications

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Napier University, Edinburgh

• PhD in Psychology

• MSc in Psychology

Life Force, Colchester (BACP-accredited)

• Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling

• Certificate in Counselling Skills

• Award in Counselling Concepts

University of Portsmouth

• PgDip in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

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Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (Paris)

• PhD in Sociology and Philosophy (doctoral research undertaken)

• MPhil in Sociology and Philosophy (Distinction)

Nanterre University (Paris)

• MA in Philosophy

• BA in Philosophy

• BA in Social Anthropology and History

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Professional Accreditation

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