Philosophy / Approach / Motivation

Philosophy

At its most basic level, therapy is just people talking with each other.

At a higher level, I believe that therapy is more like two people going on a journey together where you and your therapeutic aims are accepted and nurtured in an environment of non-judgmental safety, security, caring, trust, non-possessive warmth and unconditional positive regard.

You don’t have to have a mental health difficulty to benefit from seeing a psychologist. Many people use sessions with a psychologist to work on self-development, achievement of goals, changing habits and more.

Approach

You are the expert on you. That’s why I tailor therapy to each person’s uniqueness and preferences.

Though my training has been strongly grounded in psychodynamic and CBT approaches, I have often found it effective to work in what is called an eclectic approach. This pragmatic style of therapy meshes many other psychological approaches together to fit the needs of the person(s).

Working in this way means that I can be flexible, working as a teacher for one patient, as a guide for another, or as a combination of all the above for yet another.

Another element of my approach is called Feedback-Informed Treatment (FIT). I gather real-time input from clients using structured yet flexible measures that identify what is and is not working in therapy and how to better meet clients' needs. Use of continuous feedback loops between clients and therapists has been found to have significant positive impact on the effectiveness of therapy.

Motivation

Research and experience show that what really works in therapy regardless of the approach used, is the quality of the therapist – client relationship.

Having benefited from over 14 years of psychoanalysis myself, I have a deep personal as well as professional knowledge of the healing and learning power of the therapeutic relationship and is one of the reasons why I love my work.

Housekeeping

Dr Álvarez is fully insured so he can offer the peace of mind that you are working with a professional who places the safety of the public at the heart of his practice.

He has established good working relationships with a number of psychiatrists in private practice for cases where onward referral or joint work is required.

We do not offer an out of hours emergency service. It will not usually be possible to communicate with your therapist outside of sessions. This should be done in your sessions.

If you require emergency support, please go to an Accident and Emergency department or contact your GP.