Working in a pain service, I gained perspective on how psychology sits within a primarily physical health setting, with the challenge being psychological engagement. Co-facilitating the CBT-based pain management programme enabled me to draw parallels between factors such as sleep, stress, exercise, and pacing with an individual’s experience of pain. I learned how to set up and maintain a database for outcome measures and how to manage and score psychometric tests. Setting person-centred smart… Show more Working in a pain service, I gained perspective on how psychology sits within a primarily physical health setting, with the challenge being psychological engagement. Co-facilitating the CBT-based pain management programme enabled me to draw parallels between factors such as sleep, stress, exercise, and pacing with an individual’s experience of pain. I learned how to set up and maintain a database for outcome measures and how to manage and score psychometric tests. Setting person-centred smart goals taught me about an individual’s holistic pain experience. I produced and facilitated mindfulness group sessions, testing my ability to communicate psychological concepts in an accessible way, and allowing me to facilitate mindfulness practices in a group environment. The challenge of working in this service was communicating that the pain condition may be incurable, where I learned that concepts of acceptance through ACT could provide a useful intervention. Show less

I worked at Coln House School whilst studying my A-levels. The school was a residential school that catered for those with complex learning difficulties and disabilities. In this role I was able to work one-on-one with the children in the classroom and during break times. I had the opportunity to shadow the teaching staff and gain an understanding of how the school managed behaviours that challenge.