Hayley Rajpal
I am a Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist
Background and Experience
My training and experience mean I can work with a variety of presentations such as:
– Depression
– Anxiety
– Behavioural concerns
– Bereavement
– Developmental delay
– Phobias
– Aggression
– Sleep difficulties
– Gender dysphoria
– Consequences of child abuse (emotional, psychological, and physical)
– Early Developmental Trauma, Complex Trauma, Intergenerational Trauma
– Attachment difficulties
– Looked-after/adopted young people
– Mild-Moderate self-harming behaviour (moderate to severe requires a multi-disciplinary approach).
– Dissociation
– Learning difficulties and disabilities
– Mild eating disorders (moderate to severe requires a multi-disciplinary approach)
– Psychosomatic disorders
I have a passion for working with children and adolescents, and supporting communication and connections to develop within themselves, as well as with their support networks (including families and professional teams). I have worked in a range of settings before qualifying as a psychotherapist. These include schools; learning disability units; residential foster care homes; supporting families within their homes with their children; and, in paediatric hospital units. Additionally, I have worked for over 10 years in the NHS, and various CAMHS teams across the Southwest of England. I started my private practice in 2018.
My training enables me to use my observational skills and the relationship I build with young people and families to develop an understanding of their difficulties and concerns. Gradually and over time, I aid and encourage young people to have more of a conscious insight into why they may feel and behave in the ways they do. I enjoy being creative and bring this into my work with young people. During their sessions young people are encouraged to explore the environment and the objects within it to aid in their communication and the sharing of their difficulties. Verbal communication, non-verbal communication, play, drawing, painting, music, movement, even sitting in silence is all welcomed.
I have an interest in, and have spent many years working with, looked-after and adopted children, as well as their support networks and the various levels and experiences of trauma they have suffered. In 2021 I completed my Doctoral Thesis which focused on the complexities and challenges of offering therapeutic support and engagement with unaccompanied minors.
I have also developed several training packages on the impact on Early/Developmental/Complex Trauma on the brain and body. These have been delivered to foster carers, parents, professionals and teachers.
Qualifications
· Professional Doctorate in Child Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy from the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
· PGDip in Psychoanalytic Observational Studies from the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
· BA(Hons) in Childhood and Youth studies from Exeter University.
Affiliations
ACP (Association of Child Psychotherapists), The Tavistock Society of Psychotherapists, The Complex Trauma Institute, ACAMH (The Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health), Adopt South.
