My name is Francesca. The following bio may offer some more background on why I work the way I do.
I grew up in Italy, but I spent half of my life outside my country of origin. This brought me face to face with the challenges of finding a sense of belonging and home elsewhere. This makes me particularly attuned to cross-cultural dynamics, multi-lingual living and the struggles of understanding who we are in this new reality.
My early studies (a degree in International Relationships and Peace Studies) helped me understand human distress from the perspective of power dynamics and systemic oppression, hence why my framework of reference is systemic.
A decade later, when I retrained as a counsellor, I combined my earlier studies and previous work experience in the third sector (ranging from supporting victims of human trafficking and refugees to the homeless) to find voluntary and subsequently paid work within a counselling service for people who use substances and are involved with the criminal justice system. Through my time at this counselling service, I understood trauma from a systemic point of view and learned to convey safety and support clients to find it in their lives and within themselves. I was also a senior counsellor for a local charity for alcohol use, supervising counsellors in training.
Since 2017, I’ve volunteered as a counsellor for the therapeutic community Time and Space, supporting people who hear voices, dissociate, and self-harm. My experience here has taught me how to look beyond the labels, centre the person in the work we do together and trust, no matter what, that the person knows best what works for them in their healing journey.
Alongside this, over the years, I have nurtured a deep connection with nature, which kinship brought me a sense of connection, dignity and respect that I now extend to the other-than-human beings and world, too (hence why I have embraced a vegan lifestyle).
