Psychologists and Psychotherapists

Dr Hattie Smart DCPsych, is a Counselling Psychologist registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and holds chartered membership of the British Psychological Society (BPS). Hattie is an experienced practitioner who has worked across a wide range of NHS mental health settings, including child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), specialist perinatal community mental health teams, perinatal trauma and loss service, adult mental health services (IAPT), and physical health weight loss services at UCLH bariatric and endocrinology department. Hattie is currently a clinical supervisor and team coordinator at St George’s NHS Mental Health Trust.

Hattie has trained in Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) and has worked with a range of trauma presentations including, birth trauma, sexual abuse and loss. Her doctoral training includes Cognitive Behavioural therapy (CBT), Compassion Focused therapy (CFT), Psychodynamic therapy and Existential therapy. Hattie has trained in Circle of Security Parenting (COSP), an attachment-based parenting programme, and previously trained and qualified as a Child Wellbeing Practitioner (CWP) working with adolescents presenting with anxiety and low mood. Hattie works with parents of younger children with neurodiverse diagnoses, including autism and ADHD, and draws on relational skills to help parents foster children’s emotion regulation system and develop interpersonal social skills.

Hattie is a strengths-based relational practitioner who guides clients to develop an awareness of the interpersonal, cognitive and behavioural patterns that seemingly maintain significant psychological and emotional distress. Working collaboratively towards the clients’ goals and hopes she helps foster confidence and builds self-esteem through cognitive reappraisal, behavioural activation and values-based work. Hattie is culturally sensitive and excels in creating a safe and trusting therapeutic environment.

Hattie is experienced at working with a range of complex psychological presentations that emerge and re-emerge across the lifespan and changing circumstances. She works predominantly with individuals and couples when appropriate, holding systemic issues in mind. Presentations include generalised anxiety disorders, OCD, health anxiety, panic, social anxiety, phobias, olfactory reference disorder, disassociation, complex PTSD, post-partum psychosis, post-natal depression, complex grief, tokophophia, disordered eating and depression.

Hattie has experience of conducting psychological research within NHS services and is a published author. Her journal articles include, ‘Experiences of parenting multiple expressions of relationally challenging childhood behaviours across contexts’ (Smart et al., 2023), ‘Social media use and adolescent’ self-esteem and appearance satisfaction: The moderating role of school motivation’ (Smart et al., 2022) and her published doctoral thesis is entitled ‘How do parents experience guided self-help parenting programmes’. An interpretative phenomenological analysis.