Member of the College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy
I am a fully qualified Medical Herbalist who graduated in 1995 from the College of Phytotherapy (Cop) in Sussex, the oldest College of Herbal medicine in Europe, providing sound, scientifically-based training to become a herbal practitioner.
The course covered all the major medical and botanical sciences and trained the students to utilise physical examination techniques similar to those of general medicine and using some of the same equipment such as blood pressure monitors and stethoscopes.
The use of these skills is combined with the process of looking beyond the presenting symptoms to evaluate overall health and discover any underlying imbalances or disharmonies.
I have a keen interest in the mind/body connection and utilizing ways we can enhance our health, both physically and mentally.
Professional Activity
After qualifying I went on to work as a clinical supervisor and then as director of the London-based herbal medicine training clinic for the CoP, also lecturing in herbal therapeutics and materia medica over a period of years.
I have been running my integrative herbal medicine practice since 1995, originally from Kent and now from the beautiful west country.
Alongside my herbal practice, I have 15 years’ experience of working within the NHS in the realms of Quality Improvement and NICE Clinical Guidance Implementation.
I am also a mental health first aider and have been a health and wellbeing champion within the hospital trusts I have worked in, both much-needed resources.
I enjoy the juxtaposition between the work I do within the community and that within the acute sector, both concerned with improving health and healthcare in their various ways.
I was secretary and council member for one of the main worldwide professional membership bodies for Western Herbal Medicine – the College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy from 2004-2010 and remain a loyal member.
I took a year’s sabbatical in 2010 and spent the brunt of it in Gujurat and Karnataka, India working voluntarily within a Nature cure centre and spending time in various Vipassana meditation centres and Ayurvedic centres. Such a valuable and insightful time which influences my practice to this day.
Along with the herbs what is also covered during the consultation?
- Dietary advice
- Stress management
- Exercise
- Advice on other beneficial lifestyle measures
- Mindfulness practice (if desired)