Hello, I’m Laurie

I’m a BACP accredited therapist and supervisor based on the South Coast in Poole, Dorset. 

Before training as a therapist, I spent almost a decade working in Human Resources in both the private sector and NHS. A combination of grief, work-related stress, burnout and a general feeling of unhappiness, led me to seek therapy for the first time and I found the experience transformative.

While I originally went to therapy to process the experience of losing a parent in my early 20s, having a space where I was heard, validated, understood and seen as the real me, I was supported in other areas of my life too.

I finally had the time and space to really listen to myself and start paying attention to my own needs. From this, I started to realise how I was stuck in a cycle of pleasing others, striving for perfection, lacking boundaries, anxiety and depression; all while feeling trapped in unhealthy relationships and work environments.

Like most of us, I have experienced multiple traumas throughout my life but it was the grief and trauma of losing a parent that was the catalyst for change. As I began to see my limiting beliefs for what they really were, I finally had space in my life to figure out what I wanted. It was from building this new foundation that I finally retrained as a Counsellor – my teenage-self’s dream! I was also able to reconnect with my messy, perfectly-imperfect self and learnt to embrace the power of being an introverted HSP and intuitive empath.

Once qualified, I opened my online Private Practice and went on to do further study, which provided me with the opportunity to undertake significant research into the effects of grief, loss and relational trauma. As a result of this knowledge combined with my clinical experience, 2025 will see the launch of my second business “Speaking Grief”, which aims to make the world more “grief-literate”.

Outside of work, you’ll find me hosting a monthly “Books & Brunch”, reading anything and everything I can get my hands on (Matilda-style), soaking up the sea air on the Dorset coast, going on long walks, journaling, writing my first book, daydreaming and doodling.

While my formal training, ongoing CPD, research and professional experiences inform my work, so do my experiences of being human and I truly understand the courage it takes to acknowledge where we are and ask for help.