Comfort Shields

Tuesdays to Fridays by Appointment

Welcome, my philosophy is that the quality of one's life is determined not solely by the events in one's life, but by what one makes of these events. I am here to support clients through that work and to live a meaningful and fulfilling life. I am a psychodynamic psychotherapist and EMDR practitioner, HCPC-registered clinical psychologist,  co-founder of the former Box Tree Clinic, trained clinically at Yale Medical Centre, and an Oxford graduate. 

I work with adult individuals with a wide variety of mental health issues ranging from everyday difficulties such as low self esteem, loss, and relationships to more established diagnoses and chronic issues such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD. In addition, I offer diagnostic assessments for PTSD, adult ADHD, anxiety, and depression, and assessments appropriate for CICA, and AFCS.

I specialise in treating trauma and often work with survivors of road accidents; physical, psychological, and sexual abuse; traumatic bereavement, and suicide. I have published peer reviewed articles in leading psychology journals, and presented research at the American Psychological Association's national convention. I have completed extensive original research on complex bereavement, attachment, and temporality and was awarded the Creative Longevity and Wisdom Fellowship from the Institute for Social Innovation. Psychoanalyst, philosopher, and author of Trauma and Human Existence, Robert Stolorow described reading my research as "an exhilarating experience". 

In addition to offering therapy, I also provide diagnostic assessments for adult ADHD, PTSD, and medico-legal, and I offer clinical supervision to registered psychotherapists and trainees.

I am currently seeing all new clients by Zoom. Please email to schedule a session. I accept self-paying clients as well as Aviva, Cigna, Bupa International, and WPA Insurance plans.

Your initial consultation will be an opportunity for me to take some background history and to determine how I can help as well as for us to get to know each other.

My working hours are Tuesdays through Fridays during the day. 

I offer individual supervision on a weekly basis only.

This is a deliberate choice. Weekly supervision provides the continuity, containment, and depth needed for meaningful clinical work to unfold over time. It allows patterns to emerge, relational dynamics to be noticed, and ethical responsibility to be held carefully.

I do not offer ad-hoc or monthly individual supervision.

I offer clinical supervision for counsellors, psychotherapists, and trainees who are seeking a thoughtful, containing, and psychologically alive space in which to reflect on their work.

Supervision is offered from my practice in the Harley Street Medical District, as well as online. My approach is psychodynamic and humanistic in orientation, trauma-informed in practice, and shaped by many years of working closely with complexity: emotional, relational, cultural, and ethical.

I care deeply about supervision. It is one of the parts of my professional life I value most, and I take on supervisees with care and discernment.

Please note: while I work clinically with trauma and EMDR, I do not offer supervision for EMDR practice.

My supervisory style is engaged, relational, and reflective. I aim to offer a supervision experience that feels both supportive and intellectually rigorous.

I am not interested in supervision as a box-ticking exercise. I am interested in helping you develop your own clinical voice, your confidence in your judgement, and your capacity to stay present with complexity without becoming overwhelmed or defended against it.

I value supervision that allows room for seriousness, thoughtfulness, and occasional humour. Therapy is important work, but it is still human work.

Who I supervise

--Qualified counsellors and psychotherapists

--Trainees in recognised counselling and psychotherapy training programmes

--Clinicians working with trauma, abuse, PTSD, and complex PTSD

--Clinicians working with high-functioning professionals and expat populations

--Clinicians supporting neurodivergent adults

I would ask that before the first session you email me with a brief description of the type of work or training you do and anything special you are looking for in supervision with me. During the first session, we can get to know each other and see if we are a good fit to continue. After the first session, if you would like to continue, I would send you a supervision agreement to work together.