The Child and Adolescent Clinic
Problems we specialise in
Anxiety:
We can help with a variety of anxiety difficulties and believe in offering focused, but individually tailored, high quality CBT.
Don’t worry if you are unsure what anxiety difficulty you might be experiencing, we can help work this out at assessment, but some common difficulties include:
General worries or anxiety
Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Health Anxiety (worries about your health)
Specific phobias of any kind including vomit
Social anxiety
Exam stress
Panic attacks / panic disorder
Fears and worries about being away from parents (separation anxiety)
Challenging Behaviour in Primary School Aged Children:
In addition, we work with families of primary school aged children where parents are struggling with difficult behaviours at home (some common examples although this list is not exhaustive):
Not listening to requests and instructions from parents
Difficulties managing temper tantrums or similar behaviours
Behaviours such as shouting, swearing, being rude, often in response to being asking to do something
Child and Adolescent Therapists
Dr Laura Bowyer:
I am a warm and approachable Clinical Psychologist and BABCP accredited* Cognitive Behavioural (CBT) therapist and supervisor and I solely work with young people and families. I am also registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council (HCPC)*.
Being a Clinical Psychologist means I completed doctoral level training to become qualified. I have also completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (Distinction), and a Post Graduate Certificate in Evidence Based Practice (specialising in trauma and PTSD) at the University of Reading (Distinction). This means that I have undertaken additional training to continue to develop my skills and knowledge in these treatments and areas.
I worked for five years in the National and Specialist NHS Child Clinic for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and Related Disorders service in London at the Maudsley Hospital offering CBT treatment to young people with OCD and BDD across the country. I enjoy working with young people with all kinds of anxiety difficulties but have a particular interest in treating Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in young people. In addition to my private work, I have been working since 2014 at The Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London offering training and supervision to a range of professionals undertaking the Child or Adult CBT Diploma Courses as part of the Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) initiative.
I have published academic journal articles, contributed to a book, and, my clinical work has been featured on the BBC Horizon episode ‘A monster in my mind’ on OCD. I have also been interviewed with my colleague for a feature in the Observer Magazine on Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/06/the-ugly-truth-about-body-dysmorphia
The young people and parents I work with can expect me to be as equally committed to their progress in treatment as they are. I offer a collaborative and active approach to finding a way forward.