dr leah callebaut
England
My interest in psychology and mental health began 17 years ago. Following my
Psychology degree I began working for the NHS and training at Doctoral level to
become a Chartered Clinical Psychologist. My aim was to be be able to
practically apply psychological theory and research to help people to achieve
emotional wellbeing and enhance their quality of life. Since 2012 I have worked
in a variety of NHS psychology services, offering talking therapy and emotional
support to individuals, couples and families. Between 2014 and 2020 I
specialised in supporting people with long-term physical health conditions,
including cancer, diabetes, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome/ME,
Fibromyalgia and bowel conditions (e.g. IBS and IBD). Alongside my work with
Heal.Feel.Connect. I now continue to work part-time for an NHS hospital in
Gloucestershire, working with staff to reduce work-related stress and burnout,
and promoting a culture of compassion and psychological safety within the
organisation. After discovering a personal benefit to mindfulness meditation in
2014 I decided to pursue formal training in the delivery of Mindfulness-Based
Stress Reduction (MBSR) courses. Employing these approaches with people in
groups and during one-to-one therapy has further convinced me of the benefits of
mindfulness for mental and physical health and I enjoy being able to share this
wonderful and refreshing way of living with others. In 2021 I also completed
training to be able to deliver Compassionate Mind Training (CMT) courses, which
work to more deeply develop the self-compassion skills taught by mindfulness
practise.