How we work
Specialist care; rooted in evidence.
Ember Therapy draws on the best available clinical evidence for grief and trauma responses following birth trauma and perinatal loss — woven together with warmth, curiosity, and a deep respect for your individual experience and story.
Evidence-based treatment
NICE-recommended approaches
At Ember Therapy, our therapeutic practices are centred around two approaches approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for addressing traumatic and distressing experiences. These approaches represent the gold standard in evidence-based trauma treatment and serve as the foundation of the specialised care I provide.
Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT)
TF-CBT is one of the most rigorously evidence-based treatments available for trauma. It helps individuals understand the connections between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours following a traumatic experience. This therapy gently reduces the intensity of intrusive memories, avoidance patterns, and the emotional burden of what happened. For those who experienced a traumatic perinatal loss, TF-CBT provides a structured and compassionate framework to help make sense of their experience and find a way to cope with it more easily.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)
EMDR is a powerful and transformative therapy recommended by NICE guidelines for treating PTSD and trauma. It helps the brain fully process distressing memories that have become stuck, allowing them to gradually lose their intensity and be recalled with less pain. Ember Therapy offers this approach to address flashbacks, intrusive images, nightmares, and traumatic experiences related to pregnancy, birth, or loss. Many clients find EMDR to be a life-changing experience, even when other therapeutic approaches have felt incomplete.
Drawing on a broader range
Additional models that inform our work
Alongside the NICE-recommended approaches above, Ember Therapy also draws upon a range of therapeutic models and frameworks — to tailor our work to your individual needs and to ensure we are always focusing on what will be most helpful and supportive for you in each moment.
Compassion Focused Therapy
Experiencing perinatal loss can lead to overwhelming feelings of self-criticism, guilt, and shame, often leaving you with a deep sense of having failed in some way. It's important to acknowledge how painful this can be. Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) offers a gentle and supportive approach to help you navigate these emotions. It encourages a shift in how you relate to yourself, fostering a deeper understanding, kindness, and self-compassion.
Attachment Model
The Attachment Model helps us understand the deep bond that forms between a parent and their baby, often even before birth. It also sheds light on the implications of that bond being broken by loss. By using attachment frameworks, we can honour the importance of the relationship that has been lost and gain insight into the grief and trauma that follow in this context.
Theory-based models pertinent to grief
Ember Therapy draws on established models of grief, such as the Dual Processing Model (Schut, 1999), the Assumptive Shattered World (Schwartzberg, 1991), Continuing Bonds (Klass et al., 2014) and Growing Around Grief (Tonkin, 1996) to help make sense of what you are experiencing and to offer language and perspective when grief feels formless and overwhelming.
Who we work with.
We work with women and birthing people experiencing a wide range of emotional, psychological and relational difficulties in the context of perinatal loss. If you are not sure whether what you are experiencing fits the descriptions here, please get in touch.
Anxiety in pregnancy and after birth can involve constant worry, racing thoughts, physical tension, and panic attacks. After a loss, this often shows up as hypervigilance in a subsequent pregnancy, which may include fearing the worst case scenario, and finding it hard to trust that things will be okay.
Depression can bring persistent sadness, guilt, exhaustion, and a loss of joy during pregnancy or after birth. Following a loss, it may include self-blame, withdrawal from others, and difficulty bonding in a later pregnancy as a way of self-protection.
Pregnancy loss, or the experience of a traumatic birth, can leave lasting trauma responses. This includes flashbacks, nightmares, avoidance of reminders, and feeling constantly on edge. These reactions can resurface strongly during a subsequent pregnancy, turning routine appointments into moments of fear.
Perinatal loss can strain even strong relationships. Partners often grieve differently, intimacy may suffer, and misunderstandings with family or friends who minimise the loss can leave you feeling isolated.
You grieve not only the loss of your baby, but also the future you imagined and a part of yourself that feels lost. Others may not recognise this grief, which can make mourning feel even more isolating. These feelings may resurface around due dates, anniversaries, or during later pregnancies.
Transitions often bring significant changes to identity, relationships, and self-perception. Adjusting to parenthood, pregnancy after loss, fertility challenges, or returning to work can feel disorienting and overwhelming without support.
Perinatal OCD often involves unwanted intrusive thoughts, often concerning harm to the baby, and compulsions such as excessive checking or seeking reassurance. These thoughts are particularly distressing because they conflict with your values.
Fees and pricing
Transparent, straightforward fees
Beginning therapy can feel like a big step, and Ember Therapy wants as much of that process as possible to feel straightforward and clear. All services and fees are listed below so that you can make an informed decision without any uncertainty.
Free consultation call
Complimentary
We offer a complimentary 15-minute consultation call: a warm, informal first conversation to explore whether Ember Therapy feels right for you. We will briefly discuss what brought you here and what you are looking for, and you are welcome to ask any questions you have. There is no pressure, no commitment, and no expectation. This call exists so you can make an informed, comfortable decision about taking the next step.
Psychological assessment
£200
Ember Therapy offers a comprehensive psychological assessment before starting therapy, providing a thorough exploration of your experiences to support clearer, more directed therapeutic work. The assessment is optional but warmly recommended for anyone who would prefer a clearer, more structured starting point before therapy begins.
- A detailed look at your personal history, including key life experiences.
- Exploration of your perinatal journey, including any experiences of loss and trauma.
- Review of any current or past mental and physical health concerns.
- Discussion of previous therapy experiences and your hopes for this time.
- Completion of psychological measures to guide support or therapy in the future.
Individual therapy
£130
If, after our consultation call (or after completing a psychological assessment), you feel that Ember Therapy is a good fit for you, our first session together will focus on getting to know each other. Individual therapy sessions last 60 minutes and are available weekly. Single sessions can be a great option for those who want to explore therapy before committing to a package or who need occasional support alongside other forms of care. This first session is a chance for you to share what has led you to seek therapy. Together, we will discuss your goals and explore what you would like to feel, understand, or do differently.