Susan Blishen

I am an experienced psychodynamic psychotherapist, who trained at WPF Therapy, which was one of the foremost psychotherapy training institutions in the country. I offer long and shorter-term 1-1 psychotherapy to adults struggling with a variety of emotional problems and challenges in their lives such as: age-related issues, including the menopause and other life transitions; depression and anxiety; feelings about death and dying; grief and loss; inability to make or sustain relationships; low self-esteem; guilt, shame, frustration and anger; feeling that life has no meaning; postnatal depression; work and family problems.   As a psychodynamic psychotherapist, I am interested in how the past informs the present and will help you to consider the root causes of your distress, which may be based in childhood. Perhaps you have become distant from your feelings, or in the grip of strong emotions you can't control. Perhaps you find yourself repeating patterns of behaviour or ways of relating which might be damaging to yourself and others. Or you may feel empty, or purposeless, as if your life has no meaning. Over time and through the relationship between us I hope you will discover new ways of approaching life, less compromised by the old habits that are making you suffer. For example, you might find that you are able to express feelings you'd long buried, or to see your family in a new way, or to express your anger directly for the first time. The psychotherapeutic process is distinctive and people can sometimes find it unsettling at first. Each week, for 50 minutes, you can talk about whatever comes to mind - feelings, thoughts, memories, dreams, books, films - or you can stay silent. I usually say very little, but will attend as closely as I can to the less conscious aspects of what you bring that may be informing your difficulties. Before beginning therapy, we will meet for an initial consultation, to talk about the things that have led you to seek help and to help you consider whether the psychotherapeutic approach is right for you. Sometimes we may decide we need more time to get to know each other and to decide whether working together would be helpful. There is no commitment to ongoing work at this stage. But if you do decide to continue, we would agree the days and times to meet on an ongoing basis. I believe that therapy should be available to all and offer a number of low cost places to students, the unemployed, and people on low incomes. My premises are easy to reach by public transport and I offer day time and evening appointments Monday - Thursday.