“Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.“

- Leonard Cohen

WELCOME

As someone who knows well the unpredictable terrain of psychological wilderness, I offer a confidential, personal Temenos (Greek: land marked off as a sanctuary) where you can explore whatever you are facing. Whether desperate for change or curious, the only requirement is to come, just as you are!

I cannot thank you more for your guidance, knowledge, and support… You have made me acknowledge so much as well as deal with the past. I think your outlook on recovery and life in general is inspirational and I do not think I would have come this far without you. Thank you for helping me to discover life again and help me realise it is worth it.
K.H
I am very grateful for your continued work with my daughter. I have been equally impressed with her emotional intelligence and how profoundly she is changing and developing. She is clearly benefiting from using therapeutic techniques in helping her through her maturation process. When I think back only a short 2 years ago when she was in real trouble and pain, I am so grateful that she has been able to overcome this and is clearly flourishing!
J.R
Thank you for helping me to identify with my body in a positive way and for being someone safe and trustworthy to share with.
S.A
I wanted to say thank you so much for your support and kindness throughout this experience. You are so inspiring. I’ve been lucky to know you.
F.W

ABOUT ME

I have worked within the field of mental health for over 17 years. My experience includes speaking engagements, and leading workshops; the voluntary sector and NHS; working full-time at The Priory hospital for over 6 years as a group and individual therapist for both adults and adolescents on the Eating Disorder Unit; the Küsnacht Practice in Switzerland as case manager and therapist, and private practice in central London.

The majority of my clients are referred to me by Consultant Psychiatrists, private GP’s, treatment clinics in London and abroad, others by personal recommendation. I have built an
established reputation in the field for my ability to form strong working alliances with clients, including those who have previously been resistant to the idea of therapy.

I trained as a depth psychotherapist through the Centre of Counselling and Psychotherapy Education (CCPE) in London and obtained my Masters in Psychotherapy (Distinction)
through Northampton University. In addition, I undertook further training at the Meadows Clinic in Arizona and the Anna Freud Centre in London. I am now pursuing a PhD.

I am fully accredited with UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy) 2011163361.

Ukcp 1

APPROACH TO THERAPY

As a therapist and educator, I believe in dispelling the myth that there is a ‘miracle cure’ from mental health issues (which I prefer to couch as ‘ordinary human struggle’), as well as the equally inaccurate belief that recovery from these struggles is impossible. I see it as a process of REstoration and disCOVERY and am passionate about supporting adults, adolescents, and parents, on their journey to discover who they are and to find purpose and meaning in life.

My approach to therapy is holistic in making use of a variety of therapeutic modalities, which are tailored according to the needs of each client. My approach is also holistic in recognising that an individual’s dilemmas are at once psychic and somatic, conscious, and unconscious, internally, and externally based, and rooted in past experience as well as present functioning; none of these elements should be neglected at the expense of the others. I view creativity as a valuable tool and harness it in sessions through the use of art and sandtray therapy. “Often the hands know how to solve a riddle with which the intellect has wrestled in vain” (Jung, 1981, p.13).

I believe that the client-therapist relationship is a crucial melting pot in which past and present experience may be safely explored. Central to this is a compassionate and respectful stance that allows the client to approach avoided and painful areas of experience without fear of judgment, rejection, or ‘omniscient’ interpretation from the therapist. Feedback from clients allows me to feel confident that I am skilled at creating this situation of trust with clients.

Reference: Jung. C. (1981) The Collected Works of C. G. Jung: Structure and dynamics of the psyche. Pantheon Books.

AREAS OF WORK

Using conventional medical terms, my experience focuses on the following areas for brief focused therapy, long-term / open-ended psychotherapy, and parenting support therapy:

  • Specialist in eating disorders & body image 
 (including mirror exposure)
  • Cross-addiction with alcohol / drug abuse
  • Addiction to perfection
  • Sexuality
  • Poor self-esteem
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Self-harm
  • OCD
  • Grief, loss, and bereavement
  • Creativity and creative blocks
  • Existential crisis
  • Discovering purpose & meaning

GET IN TOUCH

Please contact Melanie Oliver

127 Harley Street, London W1G 6AZ Consulting Room and Correspondence