Making an impression as a Psychotherapist and lecturer- Sarah's journey

Hello everyone and welcome to the next instalment of our blog. Today we learn about Sarah's journey, to becoming a Psychotherapist and lecturer, working in both private practice and the NHS. Sarah's experience shows us again the myriad of opportunities and pathways available in the Psychology field, provided you had determination and commitment to stay the course. She shared having learnt so much about service users, and also herself, and the first seed of inspiration was sown in her undergraduate studies. We hope you will find reading the blog inspirational for your own journey into this field.

Sarah Gibson

Senior Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist

I am a Senior Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist working in the NHS and privately. I work with people from all walks of life to support them to overcome common mental health problems such as depression, stress and trauma. My journey in Psychology and mental health began when I was 17 years old, sadly a close family member become mentally unwell at this time. This experience understandably left an impression on me and piqued my interest in mental health at a time when I was selecting my University course choices. I decided to switch from my plan of studying Business and opted for Psychology and Sociology instead. I had not studied Psychology previously and had no experience of working in a caring role, so I was taking a leap of faith and moving into the unknown. On passing my A-Levels I eagerly left home and moved to Surrey to study at Kingston University. To be honest, as much as I was enjoying the learning in the exciting field of Psychology, I was still not certain I wanted to pursue a career in it. I was inspired by my lecturers in the field of Social Psychology, personality, intelligence, abnormal Psychology and Biopsychology, not so much in the area of statistics!

When I finished University, I worked in retail for a few months and decided to apply for a Postgraduate course in Mental Health Nursing. While studying for this I gained valuable insight and experience of working with patients in secondary care community- and inpatient settings. This cemented in my mind that I wished to work in a more psychologically informed way, and I decided to complete a Psychology conversion course at Kingston University as my Undergraduate course was not accredited by the BPS at that time. This sadly meant that I left nursing and did not complete the training.

Whilst undertaking the Postgraduate Psychology conversion course I gained some experience of working in a residential setting with adults with learning disabilities for the Fircroft Trust in Surbiton. I absolutely loved this job and made some happy memories and friendships along the way. Once I finished my course, I gained my first Assistant Clinical Psychologist post in Suffolk in a Medium Secure Hospital. I worked with adults with complex needs within a rehabilitation programme to support them to move back to their local communities, where appropriate. This work was extremely rewarding, and I learned a great deal about MDT working, the CPA (Care Programme Approach) approach and using a biopsychosocial framework to understand behaviours which challenge, in order to reduce them. A key part of the role was disseminating information and behavioural support plans to nursing- and other MDT staff members and carers.

I gained another Assistant Clinical Psychology role in a Community Learning Disability team, this time in the NHS in Wandsworth. I worked here for two years before undertaking the Low Intensity CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) course at UCL followed by the High Intensity CBT course at The Institute of Psychiatry. These two trainings were a steep learning curve and I relished the opportunity to apply my learning to my work with patients. I was taught by the key leaders in the field and learned how to assess and treat trauma, OCD, depression, health anxiety, GAD (Gerneralises Anxiety Disorder), phobias and social anxiety using evidence-based CBT protocols. A common hurdle I had to overcome was recording therapy sessions to rate myself on the CTS-R (Cognitive Therapy Scale Revised). Listening to one’s self is quite uncomfortable, but once I had settled into it, it became one of the most valuable learning tools!

Both of these trainings involved me working in busy South East London IAPT (Increased Access to Psychological Therapies) services, which has been invaluable in learning from other colleagues and supervisors and helped shape my professionalism. Importantly I have gained experience working with diverse populations and am able to adapt treatments in a culturally informed way to meet patients' needs. In 2018 I took a secondment at UCL teaching on the Low Intensity CBT course, it felt like the right time for me as I was ready to share my skills and knowledge with the Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners (PWPs) of the future. I particularly enjoyed contributing to the teaching materials around learning disabilities and how to adapt CBT tools and services to meet people with LD’s needs, and increase access to services which is an area I am passionate about. This is highlighted in a journal article that I co-wrote and was published by the BPS.

These days, I supervise, and line manage trainee- and qualified Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners alongside my patient work. What I love most about my work is people, whether its patients, the admin team or supervisees and other professionals, it has enriched my experiences and been a privilege along the way. My current plans are to continue working in the NHS, contributing to the teaching and training of PWPs, while building my own private practice in the city.

Thank you Sarah for sharing your experiences, it is invaluable to learn about the questions you faced and the decisions you made. 

Are you considering a career in the field of Psychology? Or perhaps, similar to Sarah, you have pursued a career as a Psychotherapist? Get in touch to share your own journey on the blog.

Kind regards,

The Pathways team