My Approach

Problems with sleep lead to many difficulties in life, with relationships, professional life and overall wellbeing.

Currently working online with clients worldwide, she looks forward to returning to face-face work when possible.

I specialise in issues such as trauma and PTSD and particularly how they can present as challenges to sleep. From the perspective of psychotherapy, an essential part of my ongoing research addresses the cyclical question; what comes first, poor sleep or poor mental health?

To understand our own emotional lives and those of the people around us, we need a deeper connection, and one way to do this is through mindfulness and increased awareness of how it is to be in the world. I work with a mix of practices to meet your specific needs. It might be that we take a cognitive approach, working from the top-down, accessing your story through thoughts and words, or we may take a bottom-up approach and work with the feelings and sensations of what you are experiencing.

Whichever way we choose to work, I offer a safe place to explore and discuss the most difficult of things, even those that are hidden. I provide one-to-one support without judgment or criticism to support you in finding solutions and a way forward in life.

I hold a diploma in Counselling and Psychotherapy from Bath Centre for Psychotherapy and Counselling (BCPC). I have completed training in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBTi) Trauma Assessment under Babette Rothschild.

Alongside my work as a Sleep Psychotherapist at The London Sleep Centre, I run a private psychotherapy practice in Oxford, bound by the UKCP code of ethics and regularly supervised in line with requirements. I am also a consultant at www.isleepclinic.com

An essential part of my ongoing research is exploring the cyclical question; what comes first, poor sleep or poor mental health?

About Me

Heather Darwall-Smith is a practising mindfulness psychotherapist with a specific focus on sleep. Heather completed her MA in Mindfulness-based Core Process Psychotherapy with The Karuna Institute. She takes a combination approach to issues with sleep, melding mindfulness, psychotherapy, and CBTi to meet the client where they are.

I work with

• Individuals
• Private healthcare referrals

Special Interests

Like all UKCP registered psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors I can work with a wide range of issues, but here are some areas in which I have a special interest or additional experience.

Types of Therapies Offered

• Core Process Psychotherapist

What I can help with

• Abuse
• ADHD
• Age-related Issues
• Anxiety
• Chronic Illness
• Depression
• Mental Health Issues
• Online Counselling
• Post-Traumatic Stress
• Trauma