Michelle worked for 17 years as a Consultant Clinical Psychologist with the Derby Perinatal Mental Health Service, which provides inpatient and community care for mothers suffering from a severe mental illness in pregnancy and up to one year postnatal. She developed and delivered individual and group interventions based on Compassion Focussed Therapy. She was also the first to develop a Compassionate Mind course for staff; a 12 week course eventually opened up to all staff in the Derbyshire Healthcare Foundation Trust. This was nominated for a National Positive Practice in Mental Health Award (came second!).
She has published a paper outlining the use of Compassionate Mind Training with Perinatal distress in a special edition of the International Journal of Cognitive Therapy in 2010 and she is the author of “The Compassionate Mind Approach to Postnatal Depression: Using Compassion Focussed Therapy to enhance Mood, Confidence and Bonding”. This has recently been selected for the Reading Well recommended titles for Books on Prescription. It is the first book on perinatal mental health to be included in the list.
Michelle is also a Compassionate Mind Foundation trainer and supervisor and has trained a diverse range of individuals and professional groups in CFT across the UK and further afield.
