Somatic & Integrative Psychotherapy

with Ania Halls

IFS | BRAINSPOTTING | SOMATIC THERAPY | EMDR & CBT

UK & Europe | On-line Therapy

Specialising in the treatment of Anxiety, Stress, Obsessions, Trauma and Attachment Injuries.

IFS

EMDR

Brainspotting

Somatic Therapy

CBT

Consultation

Therapies Offered:

My name is Ania Halls, and I am a UK-accredited psychotherapist with a degree and a Master’s in Health Psychology. Since 2007, I have been offering confidential, evidence-based therapy for adults experiencing a range of difficulties, including anxiety, trauma, and stress-related conditions. My work is grounded in compassion, curiosity, and a deep belief that healing unfolds within the safety of a trusting therapeutic relationship.

I work in an integrative way, bringing together somatic (body-based) approaches, parts-based therapy, and trauma processing to support meaningful, lasting change. Alongside this, I help you make sense of your experience in a way that is grounded in neuroscience. This is supported by a range of specialist trainings, allowing me to draw flexibly from different therapeutic models depending on your needs.

My formal training includes:
• Internal Family Systems (IFS)
• Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
• Brainspotting (BSP)
• Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (SP)
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Psychology (BSc) and Health Psychology (MSc)

My practice is further shaped by advanced training in body-oriented psychotherapy and attachment-based approaches, informed by leading figures in the field. These perspectives allow me to integrate both top-down and bottom-up processes, drawing from a range of frameworks, including:
• Polyvagal theory and nervous system regulation
• Neuroplasticity, memory reconsolidation, and adaptive information processing
• The multiplicity of the mind
• Dissociation and trauma recovery
• Attachment theory and relational healing
• Legacy burdens and transgenerational trauma

However, at the heart of my work is the therapeutic relationship. I believe that meaningful change takes place when you feel safe, seen, and accepted as you are. There is something profoundly transformative about being met with genuine empathy and attunement - by someone who can hold a sense of your potential, even before you are fully able to see it yourself.

Bottom-up Therapy with Ania Halls EMDR, Sensorimotor, IFS

"NEURO - PHYSIOTHERAPY WITH PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES"

- David Grand,
founder of Brainspotting

My Approach: the Psychological Backpack

Many of the people I work with already have a strong cognitive understanding of their patterns. They have reflected on their past, made sense of their experiences, and understood the origins of their patterns. And yet, something still feels stuck - anxiety returns, emotions feel overwhelming, and despite making sense of things, the deeper patterns remain unchanged. They describe a sense of a disconnect between what they understand and how they feel.

Through many years of working as a psychotherapist, I have come to understand that when change doesn’t happen through insight alone, it is often because the difficulty is held not just in the mind, but also within the nervous system.

To understand this, it can be helpful to look at how the brain and body process experience. Our brains are fundamentally organised around survival, continuously taking in and responding to streams of incoming information - from our senses, our body, our emotions, and our environment. When this flow remains within a manageable range (sometimes referred to as the window of tolerance), the brain is able to process and integrate it into a coherent whole. Through this, we adapt, make sense of what has happened, and gradually move forward.

However, when this system becomes overwhelmed, particularly through trauma, early relational experiences, or chronic stress - this process can be disrupted. Instead of being integrated, aspects of experience can remain held in their raw, unprocessed form within the nervous system.

Unfortunately, these unprocessed fragments or reaction patterns do not simply stay in the past. When something in the present resonates with them, they can be reactivated - 'leaking' into current experience and triggering the nervous system as though the original situation is happening again. This can present as anxiety, PTSD symptoms, intrusive thoughts, persistent negative beliefs, relational difficulties, emotional overwhelm, or, at times, numbness and disconnection - contributing to what are commonly described as mental health difficulties. In some cases, this process may also be expressed through the body, with chronic symptoms such as fatigue, tension, digestive issues, or other stress-related conditions, reflecting the ongoing impact of nervous system dysregulation.

I often describe this as carrying a psychological backpack - a way of understanding how these experiences accumulate over time. The backpack contains feelings that could not be fully processed, incomplete fight, flight, or shutdown responses, unmet attachment needs, and relational patterns shaped in earlier life.

We all carry one. For some, it feels relatively light; for others, heavier - shaped by life experience, sensitivity, and the availability of emotional support.

From this perspective, these responses are not signs that something is wrong with you. They are intelligent, protective adaptations - ways your nervous system learned to cope in the face of overwhelm.

Integrating Body and Mind

My approach integrates both top-down processes (thoughts, insight, and meaning-making) and bottom-up processes (the body, memory, and the nervous system). This supports change not only in how you understand your experience, but in how it is held within you - allowing shifts to be felt as well as understood.

To support this, I draw on a range of approaches, including Internal Family Systems (IFS), EMDR, Brainspotting, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and CBT where appropriate. While each has its own methods, they offer different pathways into the same underlying process: restoring connection between mind, body, and emotional experience.

Rather than focusing solely on talking, therapy involves a gradual, supported turning of attention inward - learning to notice emotions, bodily sensations, and internal patterns, and developing the capacity to stay with them safely.

Although this process may appear subtle, it engages powerful neurobiological mechanisms. As aspects of experience are brought into awareness within a safe and regulated space, the brain is able to reorganise and update itself through processes such as memory reconsolidation and adaptive information processing. Over time, patterns that were previously held outside of awareness can begin to settle and reorganise, emotions are metabolised, supporting a greater sense of regulation, coherence, and internal safety.

In this way, therapy allows previously interrupted responses to be completed - not by forcing change, but by creating the conditions in which the body’s natural capacity for self-organisation and repair can take place. As this happens, a greater sense of clarity, emotional balance, and internal stability can emerge.

In fact, I often think of bottom-up psychotherapy as a form of 'brain physiotherapy with psychological consequences' - where previously disconnected parts of the system begin to communicate and integrate. Psychological change is simply the visible expression of this deeper biological healing.

If you would like to learn more about each therapeutic approach, please explore the individual tabs in the menu bar.

Somatic Experincing IFS Therapy EMDR London

“TRAUMA IS NOT WHAT HAPPENS TO US, BUT WHAT WE HOLD INSIDE IN THE ABSENCE OF AN EMPATHIC WITNESS"

- Peter A. Levine,
founder of Somatic Experiencing

What to expect in Therapy:

Therapy is a collaborative and deeply personal process that unfolds in its own way for each individual. My approach is always tailored to meet you where you are, and we move at a pace that feels safe, manageable, and respectful.

While every journey is unique, the process often moves through three broad, overlapping stages:

Psycho-education and nervous system regulation
For clients who are already familiar with bottom-up approaches, we may begin more directly with modalities such as Internal Family Systems (IFS) or Brainspotting, particularly where there is already some capacity to stay present with internal experience.

Other approaches - such as EMDR or Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (SP) - typically begin with a resourcing phase. This involves building a foundation of internal safety, emotional regulation, and somatic awareness, and developing the ability to notice and track your internal experience without becoming overwhelmed, while gradually increasing your capacity to move between states of activation and calm.

This stage is particularly important in trauma and emotional dysregulation, where the nervous system may not have developed a reliable sense of safety. As a result, feeling calm can feel unfamiliar - or even 'unsafe' - often reflecting early attachment dynamics. In these cases, helping the nervous system settle becomes a central focus of therapy, and a key pathway for processing earlier relational experiences. Despite often being overlooked, this is where much of the most meaningful and lasting change occurs.

For those who are newer to this way of working, or who find turning inward overwhelming, we may begin with a more cognitive approach. This can include psychoeducation and elements of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), helping to build understanding of the mind-body connection and offering practical strategies for managing distress. As safety and confidence develop, the work can gradually move towards more experiential and processing-based methods.
Processing
We then begin to process what is carried in the 'psychological backpack', so that it no longer needs to be reactivated in the present. Using approaches such as EMDR, Brainspotting, IFS, and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, the system is supported to process trauma, complete unfinished responses, and integrate previously unprocessed experiences. It is not necessary to remember exactly how the problem began; the body often holds what the mind has forgotten.

The modalities I use complement one another and often blend organically. That said, some clients prefer to work within a single approach - and this is always respected. The work is guided by your individual needs, pace, and preferences.

If you would like to learn more about each therapeutic approach, please explore the individual tabs in the menu bar.
Integration
The final stage is about weaving these changes into everyday life. We focus on reinforcing new patterns of regulation, cultivating deeper self-awareness, building healthier relationships, and expanding your sense of possibility. The aim is to support lasting transformation - so that your sense of self is no longer organised around old patterns of survival, but around wholeness, choice, and connection.

“IFS CAN BE SEEN AS ATTACHMENT THEORY TAKEN INSIDE, IN THE SENSE THAT THE CLIENT’S SELF BECOMES THE GOOD ATTACHMENT FIGURE TO THEIR INSECURE OR AVOIDANT PARTS. "

- Richard Schwartz,
founder of IFS

IFS EMDR Somatic Experiencing Therapy London York on-line

Would you like to talk?

Finding the right therapist can be one of the most important - and sometimes most challenging - parts of the process. To support this, I offer a free 25-minute introductory phone call, giving us both the opportunity to explore whether we are a good fit and how we might work together.

During this call, we can briefly discuss your needs, whether that relates to anxiety, trauma, or other challenges, and I can answer any questions you may have about my approach.

You will find details about my fees and availability on the Contact page.

How to Contact me

For all enquiries and self-referrals, please email me at:
ania.m.halls@gmail.com

In your email, it would be helpful to include a few brief details about:

The difficulties and symptoms you are currently experiencing
Whether you are looking for a particular type of therapy (e.g. IFS, Brainspotting, EMDR, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy) or an integrative approach
Where you are based (this is required for insurance purposes)

There is no need to write anything lengthy - just whatever feels comfortable to share at this stage.

I will respond as soon as I can to let you know about my availability, whether I may be a good fit, and to discuss next steps, including arranging an initial consultation if appropriate.

If you would like to find out more about who can benefit from therapy, please click here.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Important: If you are currently in crisis or need urgent support, please contact your GP, call NHS 111 (UK only), or attend your nearest A&E department, as I am unable to provide emergency care.

Somatic & Integrative
Psychotherapy

UK & Europe| On-line Therapy