About my current job
I do both individual and group therapy for individuals with persistent pain, and research to try and capture the changes made following a psychological intervention. Expert witness work involves writing reports about the psychological state of individuals for the courts on a range of issues from parenting, crime and immigration. Divorceclub.com is a website aimed at supporting people to rebuild their lives after a divorce.
Something important I learned during my time at EP
It might seem obvious, but one of the most important lessons was to get into the habit of critically appraising any paper. It is now a habit to look for flaws in any argument.
How did my education influence my career path?
I remember loving the Psychological Disorders Module. I remember one lecture on insomnia, which at the time I had a bit of difficulty with, which had lots of fascinating information about sleep. In particular, I recall finding it unbelievable that people with insomnia slept on average 0-10 minutes less than people without insomnia. It encouraged me to then take part in a sleep study in which, low and behold, I drastically underestimated my own sleep. I am now pretty relaxed about sleep and realise the power that good information can have on individual's well-being.
Fond memories of my time at EP
There were so many great lectures. During on of our Attention modules with Professor Charles Spence, he played a video of two sets of figures (white and black), and asked us to count the passes the figures in white made. No one in the lecture hall noticed that a gorilla walks on the court and waves before walking off. I still use it to illustrate how limited our attention is.
Did you have a favourite tutor/lecturer/prof, and how did they inspire you?
I thought my personal tutor, Professor Charles Spence, was great! He managed to apply psychology to everyday situations and was not too proud to do research that was fun. I see he is continuing to do that by looking at how different senses affect taste.
How did friends made during your time at EP influence your life?
I felt really lucky that, compared to other subjects, psychologists really mixed with one another, and so I had plenty of psychology friends from different colleges with whom I have kept in touch over the last 20 years. They have been helpful and encouraging throughout my career. One friend was a family law barrister, and encouraged me to become an expert witness after telling me how awful some of the reports were, and that by providing a psychological perspective, I could help make a real difference to some vulnerable people.
Do you have a lesson or advice that you'd give to current students/researchers at EP?
There are lots of great studies going on, so take part in them and see if you can even become a research assistant. It really brings the research studies that we read about to life, and makes you better appreciate what a good (and bad) study looks like. Furthermore, when else would you get to sit in a dark room, with sensors over your skull while you press some buttons?!
With the benefit of hindsight, do you have any advice you'd give your younger self?
Essay writing was a real challenge for me, as I am not the most orderly thinker. It led to one tutor telling me that I could not become a clinical psychologist. I would advise myself not to get too discouraged and to get support with this early on. Learning to structure an essay and present ideas is just another skill that you can learn.
