Miriam Christie is a counsellor in South East London and online

What attracted you to become a therapist?

I have always been interested in our inner worlds but, until I started going to therapy myself, my only exposure to therapy was through TV shows like Fraser and other fictional characters, so a therapist didn’t seem like something I could aspire to be. 

Going to therapy myself showed me how transformative the process can be and I wanted to do that for other people. I see a rather reductive saying pop up on Instagram from time to time: ‘Hurt people, hurt people’. I understand its genesis, but I actually believe that people who have experienced their own dark night of the soul and been on their own healing journey often have the empathy, attunement and insight to make very good therapists.  

Where did you train? 

I started out at the Gestalt Centre in London and continued on to CPPD, in north London. Later, I completed a MA in Integrative Counselling at Leeds Becket University. 

I have also trained with the British Infertility Counselling Association and have additional training in trauma, OCD and Ecotherapy.  

Separate but complementary to my psychotherapy training, I hold level three diplomas in yoga and in pre- and postnatal fitness. 

Can you tell us about the type of therapy you practise?

I am an integrative psychotherapist and fertility counsellor. For me, the aims of therapy are always client-led. My emphasis is on co-creating a sense of unconditional acceptance and emotional safety in which to nurture self-awareness and explore, resolve or reconcile with difficult feelings and experiences.

My therapeutic approach is informed by attachment theory, the belief that the lens with which we view ourselves and the world around us is often shaped by our early experiences. I work with people to affirm and honour their subjective experiences, which creates the space for healing, growth and change.  

I work in a holistic way to honour mind and body connection. Where appropriate, I integrate techniques, including breathwork and guided meditation, to help clients manage symptoms, such as heightened anxiety or panic attacks, and to create a space where clients feel they can explore their body's cues safely. I have found that these techniques can catalyse deeper self-exploration and discovery in talking therapy.

How does your type of therapy help with fertility issues?  

I have lived experience of ‘unexplained’, sometimes termed ‘idiopathic’, infertility and I know what a rollercoaster of emotions it can be. I firmly believe that fertility counselling is an area in which people require specialised therapeutic support. The medicalised world of infertility presents you with an encyclopedia worth terms and acronyms, so it can be a huge relief to be able to talk openly with a therapist without having to first educate them about diagnoses and treatment terms. 

Your therapist needs to understand a lot about the various medical interventions and pathways to becoming a parent in order to properly be able to support you. A fertility counsellor will also be able to inform you of and help you to understand the laws and policies governing treatments, including donor conception and surrogacy, for example. 

What sort of people do you usually see?

I sometimes worry that I’m being a bit limiting or inaccurate whenever I set out a list of symptoms with which I am expert. At the same time, I completely understand that recognisable search terms are a helpful short-cut when we’re looking for someone who can help us. In reality, I am only an ‘expert’ in providing heartfelt therapy, which helps people to examine the unique experiences underneath their symptoms.

I tend to resonate best with people experiencing anxiety, depression, feeling stuck or navigating change. I have particular expertise and interest in working with people experiencing perinatal mental health issues and fertility issues. However, I am open to working with anyone who feels that my way of working would be of benefit to them. 

Have you noticed any recent mental health trends or wider changes in attitude?

I’m increasingly concerned about the impact of social media on our mental health. During the average scroll on Instagram we are bombarded with soul destroying images of war and death, presented with unattainable body images and targeted with products algorithmically curated to exploit our vulnerabilities. 

Social media is designed to be addictive and so, while we look to smartphones for stress-relief, it is all the while stealing our presence and peace of mind. The impact of all this inevitably finds its way into the therapy room where people are trying to navigate safer relationships with their phones. 

What do you like about being a therapist? 

It is such a privilege to be trusted behind the protective masks we wear day-to-day. I get to connect with wonderful people who don’t always believe in their own worth and help them to see for themselves their innate value and inner resources.  

What is less pleasant?

It’s a lifelong lesson for me to learn that I am not for everyone and that this is okay. The therapeutic relationship is at the heart of all effective therapy, so it’s important that I acknowledge when I may not be the best fit for someone, just as it’s crucial people feel they have agency in deciding if their therapist is right for them. 

How long have you been with Welldoing and what you think of us?

The Welldoing team really works hard to go the extra mile for its membership. I’ve always found them to be really responsive and supportive too. They go way beyond other listings sites to provide all sorts of resources to help us to connect and develop.  

What books have been important to you in terms of your professional and personal development? Do you ever recommend books to clients?

I had some action paralysis trying to answer this question. I’m sure I’m going to leave out something formative or important here. The books that spring to mind as having had an impact on me as a person and a therapist are Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach, A Life’s Work: On Becoming a Mother by Rachel Cusk, The Body Keeps The Score by Bessel van der Kolk and The Examined Life by Stephen Grosz. I probably recommend Tara Brach’s writings most often to clients. 

What you do for your own mental health? 

I find being close to the coast really restorative and, in day-to-day life, I make time for yoga and other movement practices. I can be a bit of a hermit if left to my own devices, but I know that being around good friends is good for my soul and energy levels. Most recently, I am trying to get better at leaving my phone behind when I don’t need it!

You are a therapist in South Norwood in South East London. What can you share with us about seeing clients in this area?

There are a lot of families in South Norwood and surrounding areas like Crystal Palace, West Norwood, Sydenham and Dulwich and parents make up a good deal of my local client-base. The people I work with online have often come to me via a referral or have been searching for someone with experience in fertility, pre- or postnatal depression or anxiety or for a therapist who takes a mind-body approach. 

What’s your consultation room like?

I like to think it’s pretty cosy and welcoming. I work out of my home-based therapy room so it has a homely, relaxed feel built-in – the opposite of clinical. It’s pretty minimal with a sofa, chair, bookshelf and coffee table. The colours are neutral-ish and I have a couple of photographs on the walls, which I picked up from the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition. They’re a few years old now and I’m always wondering if I should be updating the room somehow, but I never quite get around to it. I like to think, or perhaps give myself the excuse, that its helpful for clients to come to a neutral space that has a sense of continuity and sameness about it. 

What do you wish people knew about therapy?

I think that for many people there is a knowing when it is the ‘right time’ to come to therapy. However, I wish people knew that they don’t have to be at their lowest ebb before they can give themselves permission to seek support. 

People will often do their very best to cope on their own and then beat themselves up for trying to self-soothe with substances like alcohol, or food, to name a couple. This can mean that, by the time they come to me, they feel like they have failed in some way or are a hopeless case, which couldn’t be further from the truth. 

What did you learn about yourself in therapy?

I learnt that I don’t actually have to endlessly strive to reach some end point at which I will finally be good enough to enjoy myself. Therapy has brought me an awareness of and kindness towards the parts of me that feel vulnerable, unworthy or flawed. Understanding myself in this way has freed me from unknowingly following patterns of thought, feeling and behaviour, so that I get to choose, to grow and to change. 

This interview was updated in September 2025