Gender matters to our psychology. 

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Boys & girls, then men & women often have qualitatively, vastly different experiences of life - especially in patriarchal societies.

We are raised differently - related to differently, spoken to differently. We had different parts of us encouraged or discouraged. Women & men are socialised differently, even from before we are born.

 

For example:​

 

Living in a body, and developing a relationship with our body, is a different experience for women vs men - society has different rules for viewing, policing, controlling, studying, valuing (or not) the bodies of women vs men.​

 

Women have different physiological cycles than men, and our western society largely denies this. We also navigate huge hormonal transitions throughout our life, which transform our entire being - mind, body & soul - e.g. menses, becoming a mother (or not, whether by choice, or not), menopause, etc. all bring profound body & identity shifts.

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Motherhood is a very different experience than fatherhood. The body changes (& often physical traumas), the loss of previous identities & adapting to new ones, the division of domestic labour, the mental load, the emotional load, the career implications - all of this matters to our wellbeing, and to the meaning we make of our lives, and the identities we embody in our lives.

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Sensitivity & neurodivergence also manifest differently in women than in men - our atypical needs are often hidden behind masking, anxiety or shame. As such, we are more likely have very painful, or even traumatic experiences, in relationships - Partnerships, friendships,  family relationships, working relationships - these can all feel incredibly confusing, anxiety provoking or painful for women. Our sensitivity and neurodivergence also interact with our hormones, meaning that we can feel very unstable in ourselves throughout the years in which we have a monthly cycle, and we can really feel like we're losing our minds as perimenopause arrives. ​

 

At the same time, as women, we’re far more likely to be conditioned to please people, which often means hiding & internalising our discomfort. 

 

If you are a woman - You need a psychologist that intimately & deeply understands all of this, and more. Most psychology and therapy and training is very patriarchal in its foundations. This can manifest in obvious ways, but also more subtle ways too.

 

Many women feel misunderstood by therapists, and without this specialist women's & feminist approach, many forms of traditional therapy can often make women feel even worse. Many of my clients have had experiences of having had therapy previously that "failed", leaving them feeling that there was something wrong with them - In most cases, this was actually related to their previous therapists having a lack of awareness of how women's psychology differs in many ways from the more broad (often patriarchal) psychology approach, which is too often applied to everyone. 

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Some of my areas of special interest are:

• Maternal Mental Health - Including anxiety, rage, overwhelm, grief, shame & trauma. 

• Perimenopause and Midlife Mental Health 

• The overlap between the Perinatal and Perimenopausal transitions - for the growing number of Mums (like me) who are having babies when we are over 35 years old. 

• And more​​

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I offer:

• One-off assessment & consultation,

• Therapy and

• Therapeutic coaching.

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You can find information about the various psychological models I integrate, below.