Dr James Macdonald

James is a Clinical Psychologist specialising in Psychotherapy, currently Lead Clinician at Headington Psychotherapy in Oxford. In the late 1980s and 90s he trained extensively in Gestalt Therapy before going on to do a PhD exploring the role of shame and other factors in the emotional isolation of people seeking psychotherapy. Following a doctoral training in Clinical Psychology, James trained in a number of experiential models of psychotherapy, including Alliance Focused Therapy, a well researched, mindfulness based approach to resolving impasses in therapeutic relationships. He worked closely with the late Jeremy Safran and currently works closely with Chris Muran, the two leading developers of Alliance Focused Therapy. Most recently, James completed a MSt at Oxford University in MBCT for which he was awarded a distinction. He has a particular interest in adapting mindfulness training for therapists, helping them work more effectively with the inevitable relational challenges of therapy. James trained to teach the Interpersonal Mindfulness Programme with Phyllis Hicks and Florence Meleo-Meyer and began teaching interpersonal mindfulness with Tanya in May 2019.