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Harriet ParkerMA MBACP
A straight path running through a tunnel of green trees towards the light

Harriet ParkerMA MBACP, Psychotherapy

In Marylebone, the City of London and online.

About me

Hello, I'm Harriet Parker, an integrative psychotherapist working with adults in Marylebone, the City of London and online.

I offer a warm, thoughtful and non-judgemental space in which we can explore whatever brings you to therapy. I'm interested in understanding you as an individual, the experiences that have shaped you and what you might want to be different in your life.

I'm a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP), with an undergraduate degree from Leeds University and a master's degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy from Regent's University London.

Harriet Parker sitting on a sofa in a calm room with bookshelves and plants

From banking to therapy

Before training as a therapist, I spent fifteen years working in banking and financial services. This has given me a first-hand understanding of demanding professional environments and some of the pressures, expectations and workplace dynamics they can involve. I also saw how being seen as successful, professional and highly capable can sit alongside a private struggle to feel accepted, connected to others or fully yourself.

This experience gives me a particular understanding of professional life, but it does not exclusively define who I work with. I welcome adults from a wide range of backgrounds, identities and ways of living. You do not need to work in a corporate role to contact me.

My route into psychotherapy developed alongside many years of volunteering in suicide prevention and emotional support at organisations including the Maytree Suicide Respite House and Samaritans. At Samaritans, I have supported people both by telephone and through its work in prisons, and I currently hold a senior leadership role.

A curiosity about people and life

I've always been interested in people: how they live, what shapes them. I have travelled extensively, living and working overseas. Through work, travel, friendships and a wide-ranging social life, I have got to know people from many different cultural and social backgrounds, professions, relationships, identities and ways of living. This has helped me appreciate just how many different ways there are to build a meaningful life, and, most importantly, to approach whatever someone brings to therapy with openness, curiosity and without judgement.

Whatever you bring, I will meet it with care and curiosity. Together, we can explore what it means for you and what might help.

A space to work things out

You may have a life that looks great from the outside, while finding that it does not feel quite as good from within. Perhaps you are capable and successful, used to managing a great deal, yet privately struggle with anxiety, self-doubt, imposter syndrome or burnout.

Or something may have happened. A relationship has ended, work has become unbearable, or you feel exhausted, lonely, stuck, angry or simply unlike yourself.

In therapy, you will have a space to speak honestly about what is happening in your life. I will help you understand yourself more fully, recognise patterns that may be keeping you stuck and consider what you want to change.

Therapy with me can be the step to working things out.

How I work

As an integrative psychotherapist, I draw on different therapeutic approaches, tailoring our work to you and what you bring to therapy. You don’t need to know exactly what you want to talk about, or even be able to put into words what is troubling you. We can begin wherever feels most useful, taking time to understand your experiences and what you hope to gain from therapy.

Three approaches particularly inform how I work:

  • Person-centred

    A person-centred approach means that at the heart of my work is a genuine, accepting and non-judgemental relationship in which you can speak openly and feel heard and understood. Different ideas and therapeutic approaches may be useful at different times, but the relationship we build together remains central to the work.

  • Psychodynamic

    Psychodynamic thinking helps us explore how earlier experiences, unconscious expectations and recurring patterns in relationships may continue to shape how you see yourself, relate to others and respond to situations in the present.

  • Existential

    Existential thinking brings attention to the bigger questions of who you are, what matters to you and how you want to live. These questions may become especially important when life looks successful from the outside but feels less fulfilling than you expected, or when you find yourself wondering what you really want.

What I can help with

I have experience of working with adults of all ages across a wide range of issues. These include:

Emotional Wellbeing & Coping

  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Loneliness
  • Anger
  • Shame and guilt
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Alcohol and substance use
  • Addiction

Work & Achievement

  • Burnout
  • Imposter feelings
  • Work-life balance
  • Workplace bullying
  • Spending

Relationships & Connection

  • Social anxiety
  • Relationship difficulties
  • Recurring relationship patterns
  • Infidelity
  • Parenting

Meaning, Loss & Life Changes

  • Self-acceptance
  • Purpose and meaning
  • Questions of meaning and identity
  • Bereavement
  • Ageing and later life
  • Retirement

Working with professional life

My background in banking and financial services means I understand elements of the environments many of my clients inhabit: demanding workloads, organisational politics, difficult personalities, high expectations, competition and the pressure to continue performing even when things feel much less certain underneath.

You might be struggling with

  • Imposter syndrome and self-doubt

    Feeling that other people have more confidence in you than you have in yourself.

  • Perfectionism and pressure

    Setting relentlessly high standards for yourself and finding it difficult to feel that anything is ever quite enough.

  • Burnout and overwhelm

    Feeling depleted, detached or increasingly unable to sustain the pace you've been keeping.

  • Workplace relationships and politics

    Difficult colleagues, leadership conflict, redundancy, organisational change or uncertainty about what comes next.

  • Anxiety and overthinking

    A mind that doesn't readily switch off, or a persistent feeling that something isn't quite right.

  • Relationships and identity

    Difficulties in relationships, loneliness, questions about who you are or whether the life you've built still feels right for you.

“The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction, not a destination.”

Carl Rogers

Sessions and fees

My fee is £100 for each 50-minute psychotherapy session.

I offer a 50-minute initial session for £50, in person or online, so we can talk about what brings you to therapy and see whether working together feels right.

The therapeutic relationship is an important part of our work, and trust and understanding develop over time. I therefore usually work on an open-ended basis. We will discuss what you hope to gain from therapy and regularly review how our work is progressing.

Harriet Parker sitting in a wooden armchair in a sunlit room, looking away from the camera and smiling

Where we can meet

Get in touch

Starting therapy can feel daunting, and finding someone you feel comfortable with really matters. I offer an initial 50-minute session for £50, in person or online, so we can talk about what brings you to therapy and see whether working together feels right. There’s no obligation to continue.

I also welcome any questions by email and will be happy to arrange a brief introductory call if you’d like.

I look forward to hearing from you and aim to reply within 48 hours.

Click here to email