Hi I’m Sophie - a therapist and an adoptive mum
In my practice, I combine EMDR Therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to help you, as an adoptive parent, understand how your own story shapes your current experiences — the helpful and the unhelpful parts alike.
By creating this awareness and gently shifting your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, you can move toward greater self-belief, confidence, and calm — both as a person and as a parent.
As an adoptive parent myself, I know firsthand how complex this journey can be. I’ve learned that when I don’t prioritise my own healing and mental health, everything else becomes harder.
Parenting an adopted child means navigating not only the everyday challenges of parenting. But also the layers of trauma, attachment, and identity that come with adoption. It asks us to meet our child’s pain and history while often confronting our own.
Through seeking support for my own feelings of grief and low mood, I came to accept that I was human — navigating enormous change — and that it was okay to feel the way I did. Even on the days when I wanted to run away from it all.
Before adopting, I already loved helping others as a therapist — guiding people to see that they were enough as they were, that their feelings made sense, and that healing was possible.
My path has been one of learning, unlearning, healing, and remembering who I am beneath the overwhelm. It’s why I’m so passionate about helping others reconnect with their worth and rebuild trust in themselves.
Why focus on your own mental health?
Because, when you do, you open the door to allow the best version of you to step out.
AND, IT IS ABOUT MORE THAN JUST COPING
Self care at a surface level - a book, exercise, a binge watch, comfort food - is great and I am with you on all of those, but what about calming your system at a much deeper level?
IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT
In your adoption training, you’ll have learned why your child can run on high alert and adrenaline — but what about you?
Our brains and bodies are wired for survival, and yours is no different. Exploring how your own experiences shape your current reality isn’t about blame or criticism. It’s about understanding — the same way you’re encouraged to approach your child’s emotions and behaviours with curiosity and compassion.
Going deeper isn’t about stirring things up unnecessarily. It’s about clearing the clutter. Think of that “shove everything in” drawer — the one you quickly shut. Sorting through it can be overwhelming. But once it’s done? The sense of relief and space you create is incredible.
My approach is not to tell you what is wrong with you, it is to listen to you and hear your unique story.
I believe in the importance of every person’s inner story as a guide to how you see your life going forward. Find out more below about how the therapies I use can help you.
-
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
If you’re struggling with anxiety, low mood, stress, or self-doubt, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) can help you understand what’s keeping you stuck and give you practical tools to move forward. CBT is an evidence-based talking therapy that helps you make sense of the links between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours — and teaches you ways to create real, lasting change.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is one of the most effective and well-researched approaches for improving mental health and emotional wellbeing. It focuses on the connection between how you think, how you feel, and what you do.CBT helps you identify unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours that might be holding you back or making life more difficult. While these patterns can help you cope in the short term, they often create vicious cycles that maintain anxiety, low mood, stress, or self-criticism over time.
Through the CBT process, you’ll learn practical tools and strategies to manage negative thoughts, change unhelpful behaviours, and improve how you feel. You’ll also gain lifelong skills to support your wellbeing and help you manage future challenges with greater confidence and resilience.
CBT is a practical, action focussed approach — and the key to creating lasting change lies in putting what you learn into practice. With guidance and support, you’ll learn how to apply these skills in your everyday life, empowering you to take charge of your mental health.
What CBT Can Help With
CBT can be effective for a wide range of mental health and emotional difficulties, including:
Anxiety
Low mood and depression
Stress and burnout
Low self-esteem or self-worth
Imposter syndrome and self-doubt
Overthinking and worry
Perfectionism and people-pleasing
Sleep difficulties
Managing anger or frustration
Coping with change or uncertainty
CBT can also be tailored to support people experiencing the impact of trauma, adoption-related challenges, or relationship stress, helping you to understand and manage your emotions in a safe, structured way.
-
EMDR Therapy (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a powerful, evidence-based psychological therapy developed by Francine Shapiro in 1987. Originally created to support war veterans, EMDR is now an internationally recognised treatment for trauma, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
What Is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR therapy helps you process and heal from difficult past experiences that continue to cause emotional distress in the present. These experiences may include traumatic events, early life adversity, or situations that left you feeling powerless or unsafe.
By reprocessing these memories, EMDR can reduce emotional intensity, improve day-to-day wellbeing, and support long-term mental and emotional health.
How EMDR Works
EMDR works in a way similar to Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep — the stage of sleep where the brain naturally processes and stores memories. During EMDR sessions, your therapist will guide you through sets of bilateral stimulation (such as eye movements, tapping, or sounds) while you focus on aspects of a distressing memory.
This process helps your brain “unstick” the memory, reducing emotional distress and allowing you to view the experience from a calmer, more balanced perspective. Over time, EMDR helps change the meaning of the traumatic event, freeing you from its ongoing influence on how you think, feel, and behave.
The Benefits of EMDR Therapy
Many people find EMDR therapy helps them:
Reduce anxiety, panic, and emotional triggers
Heal from past trauma or PTSD
Improve mood and self-esteem
Feel calmer and more in control
Develop a greater sense of safety and wellbeing
If you’re living with the effects of past trauma or distressing experiences, EMDR therapy can help you move forward. It’s a practical, structured, and deeply healing approach that allows your brain to do what it’s naturally designed to do — heal.
-
I’ve come to understand that when you get to know yourself through compassion, love and acceptance, life just feels that much easier.
When you can explore your identity, your story, your patterns, and the beliefs that shape how you move through the world with a kinder perspective, you open the door to growth, choice, and confidence.
My work is about helping you get there. Together, we bring awareness to the unhelpful patterns and narratives that keep you feeling stuck, out of balance or unfulfilled. We explore how your beliefs were formed so you can understand yourself with greater clarity — and begin to create meaningful change with a new identity to guide you forward.
My approach is grounded in three values: awareness, connection, and choice.
Awareness— allowing yourself to learn about yourself - the light side, the shadow side and the bits in between.
Connection — because we heal in relationships. Feeling seen, heard, and understood helps us remember we’re not alone, and gives room for compassion and perspective.
Choice — because it brings ownership and freedom. It reminds us that life is happening for you, not to you. With understanding, you can make choices that help you feel confident, hopeful, and true to yourself.
CBT and EMDR have been powerful tools in my own journey — and they sit at the heart of the work I do. These approaches help you understand what’s happening both above and below the surface of your life, giving you the clarity to choose whether to continue on your current path or make a change — but this time from a place of self-trust and self-belief.
Qualifications & Training
I’m a fully qualified and accredited therapist, committed to ethical practice and ongoing professional development. My qualifications and memberships help ensure that you’re receiving safe, effective, and accountable care.
EMDR Standard Training, EMDR Masterclass 2021
Post Graduate Diploma in CBT - High Intensity Training, University of Chester 2013
Post Graduate Diploma in CBT - Advanced Practice, University of Cumbria 2010
BSc Honours Occupational Therapy, University of Lancaster 2007
My webinars and articles have been featured by:
My article was published in Adoption Today Magazine Summer 2026 for Adoption UK, about how understanding our patterns, pressures and vulnerabilities is an important part of making family like work.
Adoption UK is a charity for adopted and care experienced people, adoptive families, and others parenting children who can’t live with their birth parents.
I recently hosted a webinar with Catch titled, ‘More Than Coping’, focusing on the importance of therapeutic support for adoptive parents.
Catch is an online resource hub made with and for families and professionals providing trauma-informed care for children.
Whether you’re ready to begin or just want to ask a few questions, I’m here when you want to take the first step.