Laura Joanknecht

I have limited availability but happy to discuss how we might schedule time together.

I have been a therapist for 28 years and specialise in the field of psychosexual issues, including sexual violence, sexual identity,  sexual concerns (dysfunctions) and sexually compulsive behaviours.  I work with individuals and couples and hope to offer you a warm, respectful space where you feel you can freely discuss areas of your life which may have felt taboo to talk about in other environments.  

Many of my clients present with a variety of symptoms including emotional, physical and psychological. I have become very interested in the way trauma affects the body, and have developed a holistic approach to therapy.  

My aim is to provide a space which feels safe enough for you to begin to explore the reasons you have decided to enter therapy at this time particularly as I work with such sensitive issues.

In our first session, I hope we can begin to get to know each other and find out if we are a good match.   Therapy works at its best when you feel at ease enough to talk about uncomfortable feelings and thoughts.   

I generally offer a free 20 minute consultation so that we can both get a sense of whether we are a good fit for therapy.

I have limited availability but am happy to discuss our schedules to see if we can find a time that works for us.

As a supervisor I believe that a holistic approach to looking at your case work is essential.   You are the tool of your trade and so your well-being is central to your work.  I look at therapy through the lenses of somatic processing, theoretical underpinning and valuing your experiences and your phenomenological perspective.

You are the person in the room with your clients and I hope to provide you with a space in which you can freely discuss all aspects of your work without judgement. This will encourage a thorough exploration of the work that you do, and where your own process impacts on your work we can identify whether a discussion about this in supervision frees you up for greater congruence in your work, or whether there is a deeper therapeutic issue that you can further delve into in your therapy space.

Alongside this, I am keen to support you in exploring different theoretical approaches and how developing your awareness of these can underpin your practice, giving you a strong foundation from which to operate from.

As with therapy, I think it is essential that supervisor and supervisee can develop an honest and open rapport where you feel free enough to bring challenges and successes of your work and we can explore what might be going on between you and your clients, me and you, and your internal world.

Training dates and hours are updated on my websites when I have courses currently running.

Please also look at my training school, which I have sent up with a colleague.

We are due to run a CPCAB L5 course on Working with Trauma from September 2026.  This will be face to face in Kent and online.

I have taught a variety of courses over my years as a therapist and worked on a number of Diploma courses.

I also run my own bespoke training courses.   

I am currently the Programme Lead and Lecturer on the MSc in Contemporary Psychosexual Therapy for The University of Hull.

I am also the Director of Research for SPARC.  

https://instituteofpsychosexualpsychotherapy.org/sparc/

I love theory and love enabling students to learn through experience.

You can expect me to be supportive and facilitative of your learning.  I want all my students to succeed and so I am open to giving and receiving feedback.

I see training as a therapeutic alliance between trainers and students and aim to model a safe relationship extending the core conditions to my students.

Please book a free consultation session to discuss your training needs with me.