About Me
DR ISABELLE MICKLEWRIGHT DCLINPSY BSC (HONS)
MY PASSION: HELPING PEOPLE THRIVE
Life can be challenging, overwhelming and stressful. At times we all find it difficult to connect consistently to things that can boost our general sense of well-being or unhook ourselves from old, unhelpful patterns of coping and ways of thinking about ourselves and our futures. This can mean that we are held back from living the life we deserve. Working for many years with people with health conditions has highlighted the interaction between our physical and emotional health. This experience has been the catalyst to my holistic approach to well-being. I am passionate about enabling people to learn ways to live well alongside their physical condition or emotional problems and proactively connect to and learn from their experiences so they can make positive changes to lead a richer, healthier and more meaningful life.
PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
DClinPsy - Doctorate in Clinical Psychology - University College London (2011)
BSc (Hons) Psychology - University College London (2005)
WHAT IS A CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST?
I am a Senior Clinical Psychologist and I have worked as a Clinical Psychologist since 2011. Clinical Psychologists have specialist training in a range of therapeutic approaches grounded in psychological theory that focus on reducing psychological distress and promoting emotional well-being. What makes Clinical Psychologists unique is our 'scientist-practitioner' approach in which we have a grounding in understanding and applying evidenced-based psychological approaches and extensive knowledge of research methods and analysis. We are also trained to be able to carry out and interpret neuropsychological assessments to assess cognitive functioning. As a Clinical Psychologist I am trained and have significant experience with: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion Focused-Therapy (CFT) and Mindfulness and often incorporate systemic theory, attachment theory and psychodynamic frameworks when understanding a client's difficulties and how and why they might have developed. This means that I can work flexibly, integrating ideas from different psychological approaches to make the therapy fit the client and their goals (and not the other way around).
WHY CHOOSE AN HCPC REGISTERED CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST?
The general term 'psychologist' is not a protected title in the UK. This means that anybody in the UK is entitled to call themselves a psychologist, and many do. The Health and Care Professions Council regulate Practitioner Psychologists. Through the HCPC only certain Practitioner Psychologist titles are protected. One example of this is Clinical Psychologist. It is a protected title which means it can only be used by professionals who have completed undergraduate and postgraduate University studies in psychology and clinical psychology and who can prove good character and up to date continuing professional development. Unregistered professionals might not have indemnity insurance and if things go wrong there is no regulatory body to turn to. I am registered with the HCPC as a Clinical Psychologist.
MY BACKGROUND
I have always wanted to be a psychologist and even changed schools when I was 16 years old just so I could study A Level Psychology. I read avidly psychology books like ‘Profile of a Criminal Mind’ by Brian Innes, ‘The Gift of Therapy’ by Irvin D. Yalom and ‘The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat’ by Oliver Sacks and wanted to learn everything about the experiences that shape us and how we relate to other people. After a brief foray into Anthropology which allowed me to indulge my interest in the history of humankind, I completed my BSc (Hons) in Psychology from University College London. On completion of my Undergraduate Degree I worked as an Assistant Psychologist and Research Assistant before attaining a place on the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, again at University College London. The Doctorate in Clinical Psychology was an intensive and rigorous course that combined both academic teaching and clinical placements. I worked in an adult mental health service, sexual health, older adult mental health which included working with people with cognitive difficulties associated with acquired brain injury or dementia, child and adolescent mental health and with adults with learning disabilities.
My background includes 13 years experience as a Senior Clinical Psychologist in the NHS within physical health supporting people to reduce the distress associated with long-term health conditions and explore and identify ways to overcome barriers to behaviour change to facilitate adjustment. I have extensive experience working on an individual and group basis with older teenagers and adults with a wide range of emotional difficulties including (but not limited to) different anxiety-based problems, depression, low self-esteem, adjustment disorder, and loss and grief in addition to physical health problems such as fibromyalgia, hypermobility syndrome/EDS, Long COVID and diabetes.
It is a privilege to be a Clinical Psychologist and to bear witness to clients’ personal stories and experiences and be trusted to support them in understanding themselves and making positive changes to enable them to thrive.
Outside of the office I spend my time with my kind and supportive husband and our two joyful sons, wider family and friends. We moved to Buckinghamshire from London a few years ago and it is so great to return to my countryside roots having grown up surrounded by greenery and local village life. There are few things I love doing more than having a long walk in the woods and then getting competitive over a board game with my kids, losing myself in a good book or having catch up with friends or family. My interest in the impact of connecting with the natural world on our emotional and physical health has led me to enjoy seeing the benefits to clients of taking the therapy space out into nature.
TRAINING WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES
I regularly attend workshops, conferences and seminars on a variety of topics for continuing professional development.
PUBLICATIONS (some listed under my maiden name Taylor)
Micklewright, I., Barrett, R., Doyle, C., & Pierangeli, V. (2024). Cognitive Rehabilitation Intervention for Long COVID brain fog: group sessions for enhanced recovery. Poster presented at 21st NR-SIG-WFNR Conference in Coimbra, Portugal.
Channon, S., Fitzpatrick, S., Drury, H., Taylor, I., Lagnado, D. (2010). Punishment and sympathy judgments: Is the quality of mercy strained in Asperger's syndrome? Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders, 40, 1219-1226.
Michie, S., Hardeman, W., Fanshawe, T., Prevost, T., Taylor, I., Kinmonth, A.L. (2008). Investigating theoretical explanations for behaviour change: The case study of ProActive, Psychology & Health, 23, 1, 25-39.
Shannon, S., Lagnado, D., Drury, H., Matheson, E., Taylor, I. et al. Causal Reasoning and intentionality judgments after focal brain lesions. Poster presented at Cognitive Neuroscience Meeting, San Francisco, April 2008.