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Mcihele Lamonaca – Psychotherapist

Hello, I’m Michele Lamonaca, a UKCP, NCPS accredited psychodynamic psychotherapist, and BACP-registered psychotherapist. I also hold advanced training in psychotherapy, clinical psychology, psychosexology which allows me to integrate psychological and psychosexual approaches in my work.

I provide therapy for individuals and couples in Woolwich (Royal Arsenal, South-East London) and online across the UK. My practice is inclusive, trauma-informed, and LGBTQ+ affirming.

I work from a psychodynamic and integrative perspective. This means we explore how past experiences may shape your current difficulties while also developing practical strategies to support change. I believe that therapy should be a safe and confidential space where you can explore thoughts, feelings, and behaviours without judgement.

Clients often come to me when they feel:

·      stuck in unhelpful patterns,

·      disconnected from themselves or others,

·      anxious, low, or overwhelmed,

·      or struggling with intimacy, sexuality, or relationships.

I have experience supporting clients with:

·      Trauma & PTSD (including childhood trauma and complex experiences)

·      Anxiety, stress, and depression

·      Relationship and intimacy difficulties

·      Psychosexual concerns (low desire, performance anxiety, painful sex, compulsive behaviours, recovery after trauma)

·      Identity and LGBTQ+ related experiences

·      Self-esteem and personal growth

·      Problematic or harmful online sexual behaviours, with a focus on safeguarding and rehabilitation

·      Problematic use of pornography and online sexual content

·      Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse

I also work with those who feel their sexual drive may be unnatural and driven towards compulsive and illegal behaviours such as sexual and Internet sexual abuse.

The first session is an opportunity for us to meet and explore your needs, discuss what brings you to therapy, and decide whether we might work well together.
It is a
 structured assessment where I gather relevant background information, current difficulties, and your hopes for therapy. This helps shape a tailored therapeutic plan that reflects your personal goals.

I offer the initial session at the standard session rate (currently £80 for individuals and £150 for couples), and it typically lasts 50 to 60 minutes.
During this first meeting, we will also discuss confidentiality, session frequency, and practical aspects of therapy. There is no obligation to continue beyond the initial assessment, its main purpose is to help you feel informed, supported, and comfortable before committing to ongoing work.

Personal Touch

What inspired me to become a therapist is a deep respect for the complexity of human experience. I’ve seen how people often carry unspoken shame, confusion, or pain while appearing to function on the outside, and how transformative it can be to finally feel seen without judgement. I’m particularly drawn to working with areas that are often silenced or misunderstood, such as intimacy, sexuality (including paraphilias) identity, and trauma, because I believe that when these parts of ourselves are met with curiosity and compassion, real change becomes possible. At the heart of my work is a belief that every person deserves a space where they can slow down, make sense of their story, and reconnect with themselves in a way that feels safe, respectful, and empowering.

Client Focus

My client focus is centred on working with individuals and couples experiencing emotional distress rooted in trauma, relational difficulties, identity conflict, and challenges around intimacy and sexuality. I work particularly with clients who present with complex histories, including experiences of abuse, neglect, loss, marginalisation, or chronic shame, and who may struggle with anxiety, depression, addiction, or compulsive patterns of behaviour. My approach is psychodynamically informed and integrative, offering a safe, reflective, and non-judgemental therapeutic space in which clients can explore unconscious processes, attachment dynamics, and relational patterns at depth. I am committed to inclusive and affirmative practice, with particular sensitivity to LGBTQ+ clients and those whose experiences fall outside normative frameworks. Across my work, I aim to support clients in developing greater emotional awareness, relational capacity, and agency, enabling meaningful and sustainable change over time.

Background

I am a highly experienced Psychodynamic and Integrative Psychotherapist with advanced academic training (BSc Hons, MSt, MA) and extensive clinical experience across private practice, higher education, the NHS, the voluntary sector, and restorative justice settings. I have undertaken specialist postgraduate training in psychodynamic psychotherapy, clinical psychosexology, couple therapy, trauma, and the treatment of sexual abuse and offending behaviours. My work integrates depth-oriented psychodynamic thinking with evidence-based interventions to support individuals, couples, and families experiencing trauma, relational and intimacy difficulties, anxiety, depression, addiction, and complex identity issues. I have particular expertise in working with survivors of abuse, victims of crime, marginalised communities, and individuals presenting with compulsive sexual behaviours or paraphilic interests, and my practice is explicitly LGBTQ+ inclusive. Alongside my clinical work, I provide supervision, mentoring, and training for trainee and qualified psychotherapists and have contributed to university-led wellbeing and anti-discriminatory programmes. 

Therapy Approach

My therapeutic approach is psychodynamically informed and integrative, grounded in the belief that emotional difficulties are shaped by unconscious processes, early relational experiences, and patterns that continue to operate in the present. I work collaboratively and at depth, offering a containing, reflective, and emotionally attuned therapeutic relationship in which clients can explore thoughts, feelings, and relational dynamics safely and without judgement. Alongside psychodynamic understanding, I draw on evidence-based and trauma-informed interventions where appropriate, tailoring the work to each client’s needs, capacity, and pace. I place particular emphasis on the therapeutic relationship as a central agent of change, using it to support insight, emotional regulation, and the development of greater self-awareness, agency, and relational flexibility over time. 

Therapies explained

Integrative or Holistic Therapy

Integrative or Holistic Therapy combines practices and theories from various therapeutic approaches to fit the needs of the individual client.

Psychodynamic

Psychodynamic therapy focuses on unconscious processes as they are manifested in a person’s present behavior, with the goals of self-awareness and understanding of the influence of the past on present behavior.

Mcihele Lamonaca
Mcihele Lamonaca
Psychotherapist
Contact me: 07931452026
Age Range
Pricing

£80

Individual

£150

Couple

£70

Students

Locations

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