Sandra Gladh
Counsellor | Psychotherapist | EMDR therapist | Hypnotherapist
Children | Adolescents | Adults
Training | Workshops
South West London | Central London
Skype sessions
About Me
I am trained to degree standard in Counselling and Psychotherapy and I am a fully trained EMDR therapist (both for children and adults). I have a BSc in Social work, which included psychology and professional research and I am a trained hypnotherapist.
I am accredited by the National Counselling Society (NCS) and I am a member of EMDR association UK and Ireland. I am HCPC registered as a Social Worker and I am also a member of the National Hypnotherapy Society.
I have several years’ experience of working with adults, adolescents and children. My area of expertise lies working with trauma, specifically childhood trauma (physical, sexual and emotional abuse), attachment difficulties, relationship difficulties, and anxiety and anger issues.
I am currently employed by the Hounslow local authority (30 hours a week) where I work extensively with looked after children/yp/unaccompanied asylum seekers. I also have a private practice, where I see adults/young people/children to help them towards overcoming difficulties.
In my work I am able to provide a client with a safe and confidential space and offer a non-judgemental therapeutic experience. The sessions could be either counselling, psychotherapy, EMDR or hypnotherapy or a combination, depending on the client’s needs and preferences.
Given the diversity of my training I am able to offer treatment in a range of areas, which includes, but is not limited to the following areas:
Abuse, Anger management, Anxiety, Attachment disorder, Bereavement, Carer support, Depression, Dissociation, Domestic violence, Emotional abuse, Family issues, Infertility, Life altering illnesses, Low self-confidence, Low self-esteem, Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), Panic attacks, Performance enhancement, Phobias, Physical abuse, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Pregnancy and birth, Redundancy, Relationship issues, Self-harm, Separation and divorce, Sexual abuse, Stress, Trauma.
Therapies
Counselling
Sometimes in life we might encounter struggles that requires a bit of extra support and that is when counselling can help. Counselling can help you to discover new things about yourself, resolve old issues, find news way of interacting and develop coping strategies for the future. Counselling provides a confidential space to talk about recent events which you are struggling to deal with, or past events which are still impacting on your life.
My therapeutic approach is integrative and informed by a range of therapeutic theories including psychodynamic, person-centred, attachment theory and cognitive behavioural therapy. Being an integrative therapist means that adopt a holistic approach taking account all aspects of your life and I will tailor the sessions to fit you and your unique experiences. The pace and nature of the work will be guided by you.
I believe in working relationally, which means that we will be working together with the intention to develop a secure and strong therapeutic relationship that provides the foundation from which personal growth and change can begin to occur. It might be that you know exactly what you would like to work on, and which approach you would like me to use, or you might prefer for me to make some suggestions of how we might work together and which approaches I feel might be most helpful for you.
I can offer both short and long term therapy, depending on what would be most suitable to you.
I can help with you a range of emotional difficulties including: Abuse (physical, sexual and emotional abuse), Anxiety, Bereavement, Depression, Domestic Violence, Insomnia, Life Transitions, Low self-esteem, Relationship difficulties, Stress.
EMDR
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing. EMDR is a comprehensive method of psychotherapy that addresses problems that are based on earlier, traumatic and/or psychologically distressing life experiences or events.
Our brains store information in memory networks containing related thoughts, emotions and sensations. When we experience a traumatic event the system for processing memories becomes overwhelmed and the information does not get processed and it becomes frozen or stuck. The memory becomes stored as it was perceived at the time, in pictures, emotions and sensations and creates dysfunctional responses, including nightmares, new fears and avoidance strategies. The traumatic memory can feel as vivid as when it happened and cause a person to be flooded by unwanted images, sensations or negative thoughts. The stuck memory can be triggered or activated by a reminder and cause a reaction that is stronger than how you would normally react as you are not just reacting to what’s happening right now, but also to the stuck memory.
EMDR therapy relies on alternating left-right stimulation of the brain, for example through side to side eye movement or alternating taps that you can feel, which appears to help the brain to process the frozen or stuck information. As a result, the stuck memories seem to lose their intensity; they become less distressing and seem more like 'ordinary' memories. EMDR helps reduce the distress of all the different kinds of memories, whether it was what you saw, heard, smelt, tasted, felt or thought.
EMDR uses an eight phased approach to address the past, present & future memories that we store, with the aim of reducing the intensity of disturbing memories, whilst increasing a more adaptive belief about the future.
EMDR is a proven treatment for trauma, but it has also been found to help with the following problems: Abuse, Anger, Anxiety, Depression, Behavioural & Substance Addictions including smoking and food, Co-Dependence, Chronic Pain, Complicated Grief, Eating Issues, Insomnia, Low self-esteem, OCD, Phobias, Performance Enhancement, self-harming Somatic Pain.
Hypnotherapy
How can hypnotherapy help?
Imagine the brain looking like an iceberg floating in the water. The tip that you can see would represent your conscious brain, where logic and common sense exist. Underneath the water is the subconscious mind. The subconscious mind’s main goal is to protect us and help us. Our emotions, beliefs, automatic responses, habits and past experiences are stored here. The subconscious mind might be keeping habits or beliefs that we no longer want or need, but despite our logical mind telling us that we don’t want to bite our nails, have that slice of cake or feel nervous of public speaking, our subconscious mind tells us the opposite and because the subconscious mind makes up the bigger part of our brain, it often wins. Hypnotherapy can help resolve this inner conflict as during the hypnotherapy the subconscious mind can be accessed and the changes you want to make can be introduced.
The areas that I can help you with are:
Weight loss – how to stop snacking, choose the right food, reduce meal sizes, exercise more, feel better about yourself etc.
Reduce anxiety or stress – how to reduce your anxiety and stress levels, feel more relaxed and confident, worry less, learn how to relax etc.
Improve your self-confidence – this could be for specific event for example wedding speeches, exam nerves or an important interview. This can also be used to improve self-confidence in more general areas, for example work and social settings.
Let go of phobias – if you have an irrational fear or phobia then hypnotherapy can help you to take back control and to overcome your fears.
Reduce pain and learn how to control it – if you have been diagnosed to have a chronic pain then hypnotherapy can help you learn how to reduce it and control, to improve your life quality.
Reduce stress in connection with infertility and child birth – stress can have a negative effect on fertility. Hypnotherapy can help to reduce this so that the psychological conditions are favourable for conceiving. Hypnotherapy can help reduce stress and/or worries connected to giving birth and to make the birth a more positive experience. These sessions can involve your partner coming to one or more sessions.
Insomnia – how to help you get a peaceful; sleep throughout the night with tailor made recordings to help you achieve a good night sleep.
Children | Adolescents
Children and young people who are experiencing difficulties may respond to people and situations in ways that they do not understand and cannot control. Their emotions can be extreme and powerful and are often expressed through their behaviour and in problematic relationships. Through our therapy sessions the child or adolescent may begin to know and to feel able to express their most troubling thoughts and feelings. The therapeutic relationship is developed through talking or play, depending on age. I may also work with the parents, siblings and wider family in order to encourage a deeper understanding of the child’s perspective and help support change.
I have over 10 years of working with children and adolescents, both as a social worker and as a counsellor psychotherapist. I am currently working with looked after children for a local authority and as such I have great experience of working with the issues adoption/fostering raises for a child/adolescent and parents.
EMDR is a very effective and gentle way to work with children and adolescents for a range of issues, but especially for any small or big events that might have had an impact on a child’s life.
I can provide therapy to children and adolescents for a range of issues, including trauma, low self-esteem, self-harm, obsessive compulsive disorder, phobias and anxiety. I have received training in Theraplay and other therapeutic play for children and adolescents.
I take children and adolescents concerns and thoughts seriously and I’m not there to tell them that they are wrong, but to provide them with an opportunity to gain a better understanding of themselves, their relationships and their established patterns of behaviour, which will help reduce their difficulties.
I can help with children/adolescents in a range of areas, including but not limited to: any kind of trauma, anxiety, exam stress, low self-esteem, self-harm, eating disorders and insomnia.
Training
I am able to provide training for organisations in various areas, including but not limited to: attachment, promoting mental health, self-harm and trauma.
Please contact me to discuss how I can help your organisation.
Supervision
I am able to offer clinical support to individuals or groups with the aim to provide a space for reflection on case work and/or the impact of the work on individual staff. I am currently providing supervision to two groups working in the area of domestic and sexual violence.
Please contact me to discuss how I can help you or your organisation.
FAQ's
What sessions do I offer?
I offer both SKYPE and face to face sessions.
How long is a session?
- A session lasts 50minutes
- EMDR and Hypnotherapy sessions can be up to 90 minutes
How often do sessions take place?
Sessions are normally attended weekly on the same day and at the same time.
Price
Please contact me to discuss price as it will vary depending on time, location and type of treatment.
How long will I be in therapy?
The length of therapy is hard to determine. It depends on the nature of what you wish to explore, its depth and breadth. During our first session you will have the opportunity to ask any questions you might have and we will discuss what you would like to achieve from our work together. We will agree on how many sessions we would have initially, although this may alter depending on how quickly our work progressed.
Cancellation policy
For cancellation after a booking, a room booking fee will be charged.
For cancellations when less than 24 hours’ notice is given, the full rate will be charged.
How do I pay?
Payments for Skype sessions are made electronically at least an hour before the session. For face to face sessions payments can be made electronically in advance or by cash at the end of the session. For regularly clients invoices will be a possibility.
Will it remain confidential?
Confidentiality is a priority and will be discussed in your first session. I adhere to the HCPC code of conduct and National Counselling Society and National Hypnotherapy Society code of conduct and ethics.
EMDR FAQ's
What happens during an EMDR session?
EMDR is not simply the use of eye movements. Rather it is a comprehensive therapeutic approach with principles, protocols and procedures with the goal of reducing distress in the shortest period of time.
To begin with I will spend time getting to know your history and prepare you for the trauma treatment by doing some relaxation exercises with you, which could include ‘calm or pleasant place’ exercises, guided visualisation, deep muscle relaxation,
breathing retraining etc. The next stage would be target a distressing memory. I will ask you to select an image that represents the distressing event. You will then be asked to think about negative and positive thoughts, your feelings, the amount of
distress you feel and where you feel it in your body. I will then begin the eye movements while you hold the image in mind. After each set of eye movements your therapist will ask you what came to mind or what you noticed during the eye movements. During the
eye movements you may experience the distressing event quite intensely to start with, but this distress generally reduces as the memory is processed with EMDR.
Is EMDR Hypnosis?
No. During the EMDR session, the client is awake and alert and in control at all times. The healing that takes place with EMDR is much faster than with hypnotherapy. Like hypnosis, EMDR seems to work with the unconscious mind, bringing into consciousness
the repressed thoughts and feelings that must be experienced again in order to release their energetic hold on the person.
FAQ for Hypnotherapy
How does it feel to be in a hypnotic state?
Being in a hypnotic state can be described as being deeply absorbed in a TV program. You are aware that you can move and get up, but you are so comfortable and absorbed that you chose not to. The level of the hypnotic state that a person can reach is
individual and dependent on how willing the person is to relax.
Will I remember what is said during the session?
During the hypnotic state you will always be aware of what is happening, even though you might not always remember all the words that you have heard, but if there is anything you do not agree with, you will notice and you are able to reject that.
Can I be made to do anything that I do not want to do?
No, you can’t be made to do anything that you do not want to do. In stage shows the people are aware that they might be asked to perform in front of an audience and have subconsciously agreed to what they are prepared to do. That is why there are fewer
participants in the end of the show as the participants reach their limit of what they are prepared to do.
Could I tell you things while in a hypnotic state that I do not want to tell?
No. You are in control of what you are saying and what you want to reveal. If we were doing a regression and there is a memory you do not want to share you can tell me.
Can I get “stuck” and not wake up?
No, you can’t get stuck, the only thing that can happen is that you fall asleep and then wake up when I do the counting back.
Is hypnotherapy a “cure” for all my problems?
Hypnotherapy is not a cure, but it can help you make the changes you want to make, by helping you to solve the inner conflict between what you want to do and what you are doing. Hypnotherapy has helped many people and if you want to make the change then
a positive outcome would most likely occur.
Contact
Both my email and mobile answerphone are confidential and I would welcome contact in either way to discuss any questions you might have about working together.
I always try to respond to any messages left the same day.
Please contact me on my mobile 0759 975 7516 or via email contact@sandragladhpsychotherapy.com
I look forward to hearing from you.