email - michellebrooks2930@gmail.com
phone - 07890071021
Michelle Brooks
BA(Hons) - PGCE - MA Dramatherapy
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I greatly enjoyed my early working life in community arts and teaching which gave me a great foundation for my subsequent work as a therapist. I have worked as an Arts Psychotherapist in the NHS for over 20 years since qualifying as a Dramatherapist in 2000 from Hertfordshire University. I work in a community adult learning disability service and have also worked for over 10 years in acute mental health, forensic and PICU wards. I am committed to social inclusion. I use a wide lens when approaching the people I work with, asking not what is wrong with you but what has happened to you. Always curious, non-judgemental and committed to working alongside my clients, whoever they are and whatever they bring.
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AREAS OF SPECIALISM:
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• PARENTS & SIBLINGS OF PEOPLE WITH A LEARNING DISABILITY
• RELATIONAL DIFFICULTIES
• TRAUMA
• BEREAVEMENT AND LOSS
• ANXIETY AND STRESS
• LOW SELF ESTEEM
MY APPROACH:
Life can inflict many wounds but is my belief and experience that with support that is right for you – wounds can heal and our scars mark our journey. Making sense of our life experience, being aware and attuned to our inner world and feeling states, prepares the ground for a new path. The old one will be well trod, repeating many negative patterns but these patterns are not fixed. We all have the potential for change, growth and healing. We will find what works for you, always led by you.
As an arts psychotherapist I can provide a variety of creative avenues for self-expression to include talking, writing, stories, art making and embodiment. My work with you will be a collaboration. A way out of feeling stuck in repeated narratives that no longer fit - finding the stories that have not yet been told or heard.
MY THEORETICAL LENS:
My training and orientation is psychodynamic, exploring the impact of early attachment on our current relational patterns but routed in the here and now of our therapeutic relationship. Depending on the difficulty I can use a trauma informed approach where mental health and well-being is placed within in a biosocial model.
The instillation of hope through a deeper connection with our strengths can combat negative bias - such a strong constraint on a fulfilling life. We will aim to build self-compassion, self-esteem and self-confidence.
MY WORK:
I work with adults with learning disability and people with autism, within a multi-disciplinary team offering therapy, training and consultation to individuals, their staff teams, carers and families. My approach is holistic which helps me to understand my clients in the round, linking the internal world with the social context of their life. I have developed and delivered training packages on bereavement, social skills, Intensive Interaction and Personality Disorder. I run psycho educational staff training and have worked systemically with families and their circles of support.
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THERAPY SESSIONS:
Sessions are usually 50 minutes and can be online or face to face. I have a relaxed comfortable and confidential therapy room within my home. I live in the centre of the Borough of Barnet in North Finchley, well served by public transport. I operate my fees on a sliding scale to be discussed. Please contact me for further details.
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RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONS:
I have worked in collaborative research together with people with a learning disability (pwld) to produce an outcome measure (CORE-LD) to be used for pwld accessing therapy and is used by many learning disability services across the country.
British Journal of Learning Disabilities Vol. 41, Issue 4
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PROFFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS:
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