Marie Myles

As an experienced integrative counsellor and psychotherapist, I can offer you a welcoming safe and non-judgemental space to talk openly about any personal challenges you are experiencing with food, body weight or body image. Therapy sessions can provide an opportunity to openly express and explore your feelings and reflect on your experience of being in the world; particularly when previous experiences have been unsettling or resulted in personal upset, which was maybe hard to put into words in a way which provided a  sense of relief or understanding acceptance.

You may sense occasionally that you find yourself going round in circles with familiar  feelings about certain foods or eating behaviours; feelings which may keep coming up for you time and time again. Maybe you use purging behaviours from time to time in a bid to regain control over your food choices or eating patterns. Some times you may even feel exhausted with the effort of trying to change, or disillusioned with the trial and error of finding a healthy balance which works for you and your body. 

As an integrative counsellor and psychotherapist, I can meet you just where you are currently in your relationship with food, body weight and body image. I can explore with you what you are experiencing, including rituals and personal beliefs, and how these may impact on your psychological well being, vitality, and energy levels from day to day. Together we can consider what’s been difficult for you and what kind of help will support you and your relationship with food, body image and eating behaviours in a balanced way.

As an integrative counsellor and psychotherapist I sometimes draw upon the philosophy of body orientated psychotherapy when helpful. This approach can sometimes provide an option to pause and reflect on underlying awareness of a “felt sense”, or experiencing of inner mind/body process. This grounded philosophy can gradually over time offer a way of choosing to turn towards your thoughts, feelings, sensations or memories with interested curiosity, and choose to be witness to your personal expressions, or subtle mind/body process, rather than becoming lost in it, or overwhelmed by it.     

As a body orientated integrative counsellor and psychotherapist, I can offer you support in a structured therapeutic framework to help you with the step by step process of…

• exploring new ways of responding to your feelings about your eating patterns, body weigh or body image
• learning to pause and reflect on your own inner process or “felt sense” in response to your experience
• gaining insights into your behaviours and deepening your understanding of yourself and your choices
• drawing on your inherent personal qualities of compassion, tolerance and resilience
• moving forward at you own pace with a deeper understanding and awareness of your  self and your accumulated experience of life

I believe in the inherent potential we all have for leaning and growth; finding new ways to understand or move beyond previously established personal beliefs, patterns or behaviours in many areas of everyday life.

My professional background – Prior to qualifying as an integrative counsellor and psychotherapist in 2007, I qualified as a Registered General Nurse in 1988, and have nursed adult hospitalised patients’ over many years, who were undergoing surgical and medical treatment with the NHS. Over time the combination of my nursing career with my counselling and psychotherapy practice, has fostered a helpful fusion between my long term interest in physical health with psychological health and well being.

Since 2015 I have worked as a primary care counsellor with the NHS, supporting adults’ of from all walks of life to cope more effectively with their experience of depression and anxiety, or with challenging life events; such as personal loss/change, bereavement, grief or childhood trauma. Between 2005 and 2014 I have worked for several voluntary sector organisations, offering emotional support to adults’ as a trainee volunteer counsellor while studying for my diploma and professional accreditation.

• 19/06/21 – Eating Disorders and Trauma, Online Workshop, Pam Virdi Training
• 26/09/20 – Online Private Practice Conference/Communication; Can You Hear Me, Bacp
• 05/10/19 – Working at Relational Depth, M. Cooper, Compassionate Mind Foundation
• 2&3/03/19 – Experiential Existential Workshop, G. Madison, Northern Therapeutic Alliance
• 07/02/19 – Emotional Pain – Science & Strategies, Dr. C. Dunkley, Gray Rock
• 06/10/18 – Dealing with Distress; Working with Self Harm & Suicide, Pods, Carolyn Spring
• 05/10/18 – Working with Dissociative Disorders in Clinical Practice, Pods, Carolyn Spring
• 18/03/17 -The Supervisory Relationship, R. Shohet, Stanton Therapies
• 29/01/17 – Assessment and Management of Suicidality, A Psychological Approach
• 07/2015 – Counselling for Depression Competency Certificate, Keele University
• 02/08/15 – Emotional Freedom Technique, Language Skills Master Class. Delves Assocs
• 09/2014 – Focusing Level 4 -Webinar, Focusing Resources
• 05/2014 – Focusing Level 3 -Webinar, Focusing Resources
• 03/2014 – Focusing Level 2 – Webinar, Focusing Resources
• 01/2014 – Focusing Level 1 – Webinar, Focusing Resources
• 12 &13/12/13 – Working with Trauma, Resolve Staff Support Service Training
• 27&28 /03/14 – Emotional Freedom Technique – Level 2 Training, Resolve
• 18 &19/11/13 – Mediation Training, Resolve Staff Support Service, Chesterfield
• 11/09/13 – Emotional Freedom Technique – Level 1 Training, Resolve
• 12&13/07/13 – Mindfulness in Relationship, Karuna Institute
• 12/05/11- Winnicott in The Workplace, West Midlands Institute of Psychotherapy
• 28/10/10 – Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Hidden Trauma, Wolverhampton Sexual Abuse Forum
• 10/07/10 – Tight Ropes and Safety Nets, Counselling Suicidal Clients, A. Reeves Training
• 11/06/10 – Teaching Clients to Use Mindfulness Skills, Birmingham, Stanton Therapies
• 30/04/10 – Introduction to Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Birmingham, Stanton Therapies
• 13/02/10 – To Have and To Hold / Winnicott, C H Counselling & Psychotherapy, Worcester
• 14/11/09 – Exploring The Shadow / Jung, C H Counselling &Psychotherapy, Worcester
• 29/10/09 – Safe From Abuse, South Staffordshire & Shropshire Health Care NHS Foundation Trust, St Georges’ Hospital, Stafford
• 27/05/09 – Attachment Theory and Adult Mental Health, UFP Mental Health Updates
• 07/04/09 – CBT Boot Camp – Building Core Clinical Competencies, Dr. C. Padesky
• 12/03/09 – Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Depression, W. Suffolk CBT Service
• 06/03/09 – A Cognitive Behavioural Approach to When Therapy Gets Stuck, Stanton
• 28/03/05 – Working with Grief and Loss, Stafford & District Bereavement and Loss Service
• 2004 /07 – Diploma (Higher Education) Integrative Counselling, University of Birmingham
• 2003 / 04 – Counselling Skills Certificate, University of Birmingham
• 1985 / 88 – Registered General Nurse Training, Charring Cross School of Nursing, London
• 1981/ 85 – B.A (Hons) Interdisciplinary Human Studies, University of Bradford

• Accredited Member, British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy