Agnieszka Religa

Agnieszka is a highly qualified therapist with an MSc in Psychology and an MSc in Family and Couple Therapy. She also has extensive training in Emotionally Focused Therapy. She has an interest and additional training in other attachment based therapeutic approaches such as Internal Family Systems and Attachment Based Family Therapy. Agnieszka is interested in providing interventions which draw from the fields of neuroscience in their treatment of attachment & trauma as well as somatic approaches to healing. She regularly attends intensive workshops with some of the world's leading experts in the field of neuroscience and brings that knowledge to her sessions with clients. She has been practicing in a variety of settings including CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services), Adult NHS services, schools, local authorities, and private practice. She is registered with the UK Council for Psychotherapy and the Association for Family Therapy. 

Agnieszka has a warm and validating approach. She's interested in clients' personal and relational strengths and resources while acknowledging how overwhelming difficulties can sometimes appear. Agnieszka primarily works with couples and families but also individuals who are struggling with a range of emotional, relational and mental health issues. She helps clients to shift from being stuck in destructive relational patterns of conflict / behaviours (e.g., attack-withdraw or blame-defend) towards a safe and loving emotional connection. 

In the process of therapy, Agnieszka facilitates exploration of those patterns by helping clients to connect with the underlying unexpressed emotions, unmet attachment needs, longings and fears that drive those hurtful behaviours. This facilitates new ways of interacting/communicating and subsequently redefines their relationships as safe and secure. Agnieszka creates an environment that enables clients to safely express and explore difficult thoughts and feelings, in family/couple sessions for everyone to appreciate each other's experiences and views and consequently understand and meet each other's needs. This creates an atmosphere where family members feel heard, understood, appreciated, connected, loved and important. These are our basic attachment needs and research tells us that when these are met, they not only heal relational bonds, but also the health and the well-being of all individuals involved.