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Josefine Speyer, UKCP Accredited Psychotherapist

Josefine Speyer

LONDON NW2
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Josefine Speyer, UKCP Accredited Psychotherapist

Josefine Speyer

LONDON NW2
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My Approach

My orientation is broadly speaking integrative and psychodynamic, strongly informed by attachment theory and trauma theory. My original training was in body psychotherapy and holistic psychotherapy. Psychoanalysis and my experience of working with the dying and the bereaved have further broadened my outlook and informed my work as well as research into traumatic attachment led by Dr. Felicity de Zulueta.
I have worked with adults from all walks of life and from a variety of cultural backgrounds who suffered with anxiety, depression, difficulties in relationships, bereavement, grief and loss, creative blocks, stress and trauma, affected by chronic or life-threatening illness or end of life issues. My particular interest has been addressing unresolved grief and attachment trauma across the lifespan.
I now offer short-term work only. This means our work will have a particular focus.

Your first appointment will be an initial assessment. This provides an opportunity for us to talk about your current situation and difficulties. If it feels right for us to work together we will meet once a week at the same day and time or more frequently, depending on individual circumstances and need. All appointments are 60 minutes.
In some cases our work may be very brief and may only take a few sessions.

About Me

I am a senior psychotherapist and clinical supervisor in private practice, working online via Zoom.
I am offering short-term work only as I am closing my practice at the end of July 2027.
I have over 40 years of experience working as a psychotherapist and over 30 years as death education workshop leader, offering talks, groups and individual sessions. Over 25 years as a clinical supervisor,
I offer clinical supervision to therapists working towards retirement. I alsp work with bereavement counsellors, bereavement services, hospice counsellors and other professionals working with the terminally ill, the dying or the bereaved.

A founder of the Natural Death Centre charity in 1991 I have held Death Salons since then, I held a monthly Death Cafe (2012 – 2021). At present I offer death education workshops or bereavement groups by invitation only.
I offer closed groups to talk about ageing, death or bereavement.
Prior to becoming a psychotherapist I trained as an artist in Stuttgart and Berlin. I am a mother and grandmother.

I work with

  • Groups
  • Individuals

Special Interests

Like all UKCP registered psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors I can work with a wide range of issues, but here are some areas in which I have a special interest or additional experience.

Age-related issues such as health related issues with ageing, dealing with menopause, retirement or facing old age, facing your own mortality can bring up difficulties in a number of ways and affects how you feel about yourself, your sense of identity and how you relate to others. Psychotherapy can provide a confidential, non-judgemental space where you can explore your thoughts and feelings freely and exploring any conflicts you might have.
I have a special interest in working with grief, loss and bereavement. Untimely or sudden death or multiple bereavements can be hard to bear. Sometimes we realise only years later that we have been unable to grieve. A traumatic experience of loss can make it difficult 'to get on with life'. Death can make us question the way we live and challenge us to re-evaluate what we consider to be important. It can bring up questions about our religious or spiritual beliefs. Previous ways of coping may no longer work. Counselling or psychotherapy can offer a safe, non-judgemental space for exploration towards integrating complex feelings and dealing with 'unfinished business' in order to find some acceptance and peace with the new reality. Bereavement can also make us want to look more deeply at ourselves and at unresolved issues of the past, how these have affected us, and lead us to personal growth. I also work with people who are faced with their own mortality, either because they had a diagnosis of a serious illness or as part of ageing. Talking therapy can offer invaluable emotional support at this time and may offer a path towards making a deeper and more meaningful connection to self and life which may be enriching.
A cancer diagnosis can turn one's life upside down, as a patient, a carer or a loved one close to the patient. It can greatly stress relationships. Going through treatment can arouse many fears, It can sometimes feel like a very dark and lonely place to be. Counselling can offer support in adjusting to this new reality and finding a way through to gain a new sense of balance. Cancer can make us face our mortality. Although many people make a good recovery from cancer and live a good life for many years, for some sadly this is not the case. I have been deeply inspired by Lawrence LeShan's book Cancer As a Turning Point. You might want to try to buy this book via Amazon second hand as it is now out of print. I believe we can use the remaining time in our life, however long or short, to live in the most meaningful and creative way and the most joyful way we can, so that one day we can die with the least regret.
Relationships are at the centre of what psychotherapy is about. There is the relationship you have with yourself, how you feel about yourself, how you feel about others and how you relate to them. We are social beings and our earliest experiences of care, or lack of care, will have left an imprint in how we relate to the world, as a safe or not very safe place to be. In therapy we will explore how you feel about yourself and the early relationships you had in your family. It helps us understand you and your present difficulties better. I aim to provide a safe space for exploration to help you find your way forward.
I offer clinical supervision, individually or for organisations in small groups. If you feel my areas of expertise and interest could be useful to you, please contact me to discuss your particular needs. I also work with professionals who are working with people who are terminally or seriously ill, the dying and the bereaved. I have many years of experience as a supervisor for bereavement services offering time-limited work. I enjoy the collaborative and creative exploration within supervision, supporting therapists, building on their strengths and helping them to develop awareness in areas where attention might be needed. I like to create a safe environment for learning. As part of supervision I have a particular interest in - exploring attachment patterns and how these affect relationship, with self and others, incl. therapist - looking at issues of ending and absence: the ending of sessions, missed appointments, holidays, planned and unplanned absences; the ending phase of therapy - planning and working towards retirement and closing your practice - exploring transference issues - working with dreams I am familiar with supervising open-ended, long-term and short-term work. . If you have questions and would like to find out more, please contact me by email.

Types of Therapies Offered

  • Integrative Psychotherapist

What I can help with

  • Age-related Issues
  • Anxiety
  • Bereavement
  • Cancer
  • Chronic Illness
  • Cultural Issues
  • Depression
  • Health-related Issues
  • Online Counselling
  • Relationships
  • Separation
  • Spirituality
  • Stress
  • Supervision
  • Trauma

Types of sessions

  • Online Therapy

LONDON Office

Heber Road
LONDON NW2 6AA
UK

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UKCP College

  • Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy College (HIPC)
Josefine Speyer

Josefine Speyer

LONDON NW2
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