Ivana SHARP
Integrative therapistAbout Me
I am an experienced, BACP accredited integrative counsellor offering weekly one-to-one counselling sessions. My style is emphatic and sensitive, responsive to what each person brings to the session. It could be a particular problem such as anxiety or depression or you might be looking for help with a more vague sense of something being wrong.
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Collaborative - We are equal partners with a common goal but different roles. I bring my knowledge, experience and skills which enable me to have some insight and intuition about the nature of your concerns, but I won’t offer ready made answers or advice of what you should do. This is for us to discover together. You use your own knowledge of yourself and your circumstances, and a sense of what feels right for you. Therapy works best if you also bring your curiosity and openness to finding out something new, willingness to engage with therapy and to tolerate not knowing, some patience with and trust in the process.
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Relational - The encounter between us will be an important source of information and material for our work. I aim to connect with you with authenticity and integrity, balancing personal engagement with a more observing stance.
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Transparent - I welcome your curiosity about what, how and why of therapy and am happy to discuss what we are doing at any point.
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Containing - I hold a strong therapeutic frame with clear boundaries for both of us which we agree on at the beginning. While this can feel restrictive and unnecessary in good times, it offers a solid container within which we can feel safe enough to go deep into our experience.
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Integrative - Therapy happens on different levels from holding a safe space to be heard and to reflect; to getting in touch with less familiar aspects of yourself; to finding a sense of meaning and purpose in your life. My training allows me to combine humanistic and psychodynamic approaches, while also using aspects of CBT, mindfulness, body psychotherapy and transpersonal thought.
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Staying with experience - In my view this is the most powerful tool for change and healing, and underpins everything that happens in therapy. I maintain ongoing regular mindfulness practice and bring this into sessions as a reliable way of reconnecting with our source of aliveness and deep knowing. My approach to therapy is based on the assumption that body and mind are fully interconnected.
I would like to help you to not only find unique solutions to your difficulties, but to support you towards feeling more fully alive, centred and empowered.
My special interests are body/mind connection, neurodivergence and responding to the current climate and ecology crisis.
Issues often worked with
Types of therapy
Therapy offered
Client groups
Fees
All sessions £70
Concessions available in some circumstances.
Sessions last 50 minutes.
Training and qualifications
Advanced Diploma in Humanistic Integrative Counselling.
In addition to my private practice, I have several years of experience working with a wide range of issues in both long-term and time limited therapy. I have worked as a bereavement counsellor for Brent Bereavement Service and as an integrative therapist for the short-term counselling service at a leading mental health charity.
My background is in teaching, working with children with special educational needs and also in holistic complementary therapies.
I continue my personal and professional development through attending trainings and workshops, ongoing peer support group, mindfulness practice and personal therapy.