Dr Jennifer Breen
Clinical Psychologist
I am a HCPC registered Clinical Psychologist based in South East London who has more than ten years experience qualified specialising in supporting neurodivergent individuals. I have a particular interest working with Autistic children and young people and their families, and those who find it difficult to engage with professionals, display behaviours that are a challenge for others to manage and/or whose difficulties are longstanding. I am a Principal Clinical Psychologist in an Adult Autism Assessment Service in the NHS and have previously worked for eight years as a Senior Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist (including one year as joint team lead) in the NHS National and Specialist Service for Autism and complex neurodevelopmental conditions (SCAAND) alongside private practice.
I am passionate about supporting individuals to overcome difficulties, build skills and enhance emotional and psychological wellbeing. I also complete 'gold standard' diagnostic assessments for Autism, ADHD and learning difficulties/disabilities, am involved in research, and offer supervision, training and consultation to a range of audiences (e.g. professionals, parents and postgraduate students studying for Masters & Doctorate university degrees).
Qualifications:
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Postgraduate Diploma in Leadership in CAMHS Services, Kings College London (Distinction)
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Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy), Royal Holloway University of London.
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Masters of Philosophy (MPhil), University of Manchester focussing on researching catatonia in Autistic people.
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BA Hons in Psychology with British Sign Language, University of Durham.
Registrations:
Health and Care Professions Council (Registration Number PYL35074).
Areas of Expertise
People see a Clinical Psychologist for a range of different reasons. Usually, it is because they are struggling with their mental health and emotional wellbeing. Some people have a formal diagnosis of a mental health problem like anxiety or depression, and others do not but are struggling to do things they want or need to in their life because of the distress associated with worry, anxiety or sadness. For neurodivergent individuals, mental health problems can present differently (and sadly are more common than for neurotypical individuals), and so it is important to think about things a little differently to enable effective support and treatment.
I offer psychological therapy for a range of presenting problems. My specialities include:
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Working with Autistic children, young people and adults (pre-existing and suspected diagnoses).
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Using individualised evidence-based approaches to support those who are struggling with their mental health & emotional wellbeing (including low mood, anxiety, panic, phobias and obsessive compulsive disorders), particularly when they co-occur with Autism.
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Working with individuals who are presenting with behaviours that are difficult for adults to manage, such as unsafe or socially inappropriate behaviours.
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Supporting parents to understand their child (particularly with neurodivergence or suspected neurodivergence) and implement effective behaviour management techniques.
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Focusing on skill development such as emotional literacy and regulation or sleep difficulties.
WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY
PARENT OF 'R'
(Aged 17 with diagnoses of Autism, anxiety & low mood)
Your level of understanding about Autism, knowledge and professionalism was amazing.
Jen's work has been life changing for R and our whole family, it's transformed our lives. It's been brilliant as it's given R strategies that he can use himself to help his anxiety. He's able to do them himself rather than us have to help him manage and that means that he's so much more independent.
Our future as a family feels a lot different; R has a bright future now, the future he always wanted for himself ... I pinch myself every day that things are so different now
PARENT OF 'D'
(Aged 11 with diagnoses of Autism & anxiety)
I am so impressed about how you engaged with D about his interests and developed an immediate rapport with him.
You managed to get him to reveal and talk so much in the first session. Despite doing lots of talking therapy before, he has never been able to use an hour like that so effectively and he didn't want the session to end.
A huge surprise to me and his father - thank you so much!
'B'
(Aged 16 with diagnoses of high functioning Autism & anxiety)
Of all the therapists I've met over the years, you're the only one I've ever liked and ever spoken to. Our sessions are so useful to help me understand my anxiety and think about how I can manage it better. I really like that we decide together what we are going to talk about rather than you just telling me what we're doing.
M's NHS GP
I'm contacting you to thank you for M's report confirming his diagnosis of Autism and ADHD ... of all the reports I have read as part of my job working for many years as an NHS GP, this is by far the best.
WORKING DIRECTLY WITH PEOPLE
I have spent many years working with children and young people with a range of presenting difficulties and now work in Adult services (see 'Areas of Expertise' section).
I offer a safe space for individuals to explore their difficulties, provide psycho-education to aid understanding of their experiences and teach developmentally appropriate coping skills alongside specific intervention for mental health difficulties. I am flexible, creative and work hard to build rapport. I particularly enjoy working with young people who are difficult to engage and require adaptation to how therapy is typically delivered, including those who are Autistic.
I also help adults who care for or support individuals I work with to understand and support them more effectively (see 'Working with Parents & Carers' section).
AUTISM
I have a specialist interest in Autism.
I am trained in completing gold standard Autism diagnostic assessments and specialise in assessing individuals where there is added complexity (e.g. co-occuring mental health disorders, challenging behaviour, difficult early experiences). I work hard to write neuroaffirmative reports that include strengths as well as difficulties/differences.
I offer a range of psychological therapy interventions with Autistic individuals and their families/networks. This could be developing understanding of what Autism means for the individual and/or family, or offering evidence-based adapted interventions for presenting difficulties such as mental health problems (e.g. anxiety, low mood) or understanding and managing challenging behaviour.
WORKING WITH PARENTS & CARERS
I help parents and carers to understand their children better and know how to support them more effectively.
I offer a confidential space to explore and understand a range of difficulties individuals they care for are experiencing (including linked to underlying neurodivergence). I work collaboratively with parents and carers to develop goals for our work which make a real difference to their child and family's quality of life. I utilise a flexible approach using individualised evidence-based interventions.
I am a firm believer in the importance of engaging with parents and carers, even when predominantly working directly with children under 18 years old. This is because I think it is important to view a child as part of a family who can support them to overcome difficulties by understanding their experiences, rather than expecting them to do this in isolation.
Sessions & Fees
Initial screening:
I offer a free 20-30 minute telephone call to briefly discuss the difficulty you or your child is experiencing and what kind of help you are looking for, to determine if we are a good fit and if I might be able to help. We will then arrange an appointment for an Initial Assessment to further explore this in more detail.
Initial Assessment Appointment:
During the Initial Assessment Appointment, we will explore what you or your child is struggling with in more detail so I can better understand the problem and I will find out more about your family so we can agree a treatment plan going forwards that works for you. Sometimes this appointment is just with parents and carers, and sometimes the young person joins for some or all of the session - we will discuss what will be most helpful in the initial telephone screening.
Further Sessions:
We will agree together a treatment plan. I offer both short term (2-6 sessions) and longer term psychological intervention work, depending on the presenting problem and any added complexities (e.g. longstanding nature of difficulties, Autism, difficulties meeting with or talking to professionals). I offer a very limited number of both online and face-to-face sessions.
Session Fees:
Sessions are 60 minutes long and cost £150. Fees are required to be paid before appointments.
Location of appointments:
For face-to-face appointments, I have a clinic room in Peckham Levels, which is located a few minutes walk from Peckham Rye train station. However online appointments via Teams can also be completed at your request.
Other:
I offer a range of other services, such as Autism diagnostic assessments (as part of a clinical team), cognitive assessments, delivering training and offering consultations and supervision. Please contact me to discuss these requests further.
Cancellation Policy:
I understand that things can come up and offer flexibility in rescheduling or cancelling sessions. If you need to cancel or reschedule, I ask for 24 hours notice, as cancellations after this time will be charged in full.
Contact Jen
If you are interested in speaking to Jen about whether she might be able to help you, please email her at hello@drjenbreen.co.uk and she will be in touch (usually within 48 hours).