Functional Neurological Disorder:

FND is a condition that is right at the juncture between mind, brain and body. It therefore tends to be appallingly neglected by the medical system – lost in the gaps between specialisms and the dualism of the prevailing Western medical model. People often spend years getting a diagnosis and even then find little support, or worse still can be accused of ‘faking it’. FND is sometimes also referred to as conversion disorder or somatisation disorder, and can often be what is behind ‘unexplained’ symptoms, because the list of symptoms it can cause is huge. But it can be explained in terms of disturbances to the stress response system and nervous system dysregulation. Through my family’s experience of this condition, I have researched the literature and connected with many patients and their families. I have found out that there are actually many approaches that are helpful for FND, many of which fall under a broad psychotherapies umbrella.

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I do not claim to have all the answers, but I am working hard to join up the dots and see the patterns that connect the sometimes mysterious-seeming symptoms. If you or a loved one has FND, please consider arranging a couple of sessions (maybe online if you are far away) where I can listen to your story. I can help you figure out why this may have happened to you, what your triggers are and what may be sustaining symptoms. I can bring together a range of approaches and resources that are safe for you to try at home, even if your health provider is still ‘ruling out other causes’.

If you wish to work longer term with me, I can bring together approaches from my brain and body-informed range of practices within a person-centred counselling framework (please see the Therapies pages for more details of how I work). FND is still an emerging field in psychotherapy and your personal presentation will be unique. However, there are reasons to think that problems with dissociation, interoception and predictive coding may be significant. I am currently researching a range of promising approaches and will be sharing what I find with other psychotherapists who may in some cases be better qualified for this work. The current situation is that most psychotherapists unfortunately haven't even heard of FND but would be in a great position to help, if only they knew more about the specifics of FND.

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With FND it’s important to challenge the disturbed neural pathways as early as possibly such that they are more easily brought back to health. Long waits not knowing what to do can make it harder in the long run.

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Unfortunately, waits for NHS services are well beyond what is acceptable and medical gaslighting is a common and crushing experience. It's important to do what you can in the meantime. I do believe that if you can get to the root of the problem, all the symptoms can resolve or at least reduce enough for you to be able to get on with your life. Please read on for some resources that can get you started.