One on One with Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Writer Dr Stephanie Carty

Can you tell me a bit about your background and journey into psychology and what inspired you to pursue clinical psychology as a career path?

I thought I wanted to be a surgeon when I was at primary school as I always had an interest in how the body functions. There was a fork in the road when choosing A-level subjects of whether to select those needed to study medicine or to choose psychology with a view to becoming a Clinical Psychologist, so I guess I made that decision aged fifteen!

The deciding factor at the time was considering how much time I would get to spend with each person in-clinic. I think psychology courses remain so popular as the subject combines an understanding of the self and other, a chance to make a difference in a daily job, as well as being so utterly fascinating.

I've been fortunate enough to work as a qualified psychologist in two very different specialties – with children in care and then in adult physical health.

What does your job role as a Consultant Clinical Psychologist / Head of Psychology entail, and what does a typical day look like for you?

My job involves a lot of meetings! I'm Head of Psychology in an acute hospital setting so that means we cover lots of specialties within physical health such as Neurology, Paediatric Diabetes and Palliative Care. I'm fortunate to have my office in a corridor full of Psychologists which is rare these days.

The post involves clinical leadership, operational management, liaising within and outside of the Trust, for example with commissioners, leading on projects such as those to enhance recruitment, retention and psychologist wellbeing. This is all while staying within a budget and trying to support the wider trust in its ambition to be psychologically-informed.

I work closely with the Consultant leads who do an amazing job of managing staff in their specialties and creating a positive place to work despite obvious challenges in the system currently. I have a very small caseload and am involved in some project work for Maternity to aid midwives' wellbeing.

Each week has its planned work and then urgent matters that arise to deal with which helps to keep me energised. I've always wanted to work in a hospital environment and hope to move towards greater integration within MDTs in the future.

Outside of psychology, you're also an award winning writer; tell me about this?

I came to writing by accident when I wrote a short fictional piece for the BPS West Midlands branch newsletter. I thought it may be more engaging to write a story rather than a factual piece. I didn't realise that I'd written and published my first piece of 'flash fiction' which is the name of stories under 1000 words.

There's a vibrant and supportive writing community online with many opportunities to submit and publish short fiction online and in print. I guess I caught the bug and published over 70 pieces of short and longer fiction and non-fiction! It's a way to connect with others and harness creativity.

I started with very short fiction, met amazing people along the way, then published a novella, a writers' guide to applying psychology to characters, a short fiction collection and a novel.

I'm currently working on another novel. It gives me an additional strand to my life outside of home and parenting which I'm grateful for and I think has been protective for my wellbeing in many ways.

Tell me about the writing courses you run.

Writers are often interested in the psychology of their characters. I designed a course that walks them through different aspects such as attachment theory, CBT formulation and the role of defence mechanisms as well as considering how people realistically change their views or behaviours as part of the arc of a story.

Pre-Covid I travelled to different cities to run this as a whole day workshop, then moved to completely online so that writers from all around the world can join which has been fascinating.

I also run short courses related to both writing and psychology such as tapping into the unconscious mind for creativity. My next non-fiction book will be a writers' guide to understanding themselves by analysing the content and process of their writing.

Can you share a piece of work or research that has really changed or shaped your practice?

When I was an undergraduate, I was fascinated by psychoneuroimmunology. Studies by Pennebaker and others in the eighties and nineties were demonstrating how expressive (rather than factual) writing could bring about health benefits including improved immune functioning. I think we still haven't tapped into the potential that this kind of writing has for health.

Read a summary of this work

What advice would you give to other psychologists who may be interested in getting into writing?

My advice is to start short! There are hundreds of opportunities for flash fiction and short stories both online and in print. Competitions and call-outs for various literary magazines means there are always places to send your work and to read good examples of short fiction.

It's a skill that takes time to hone so why not start now? I've found Twitter to be a great resource for linking in with other writers and there is a Facebook group called UK Clinical Psychologists Who (Want To) Write Fiction.

Fauzia Khan is an Assistant Psychologist currently working within the NHS, whilst completing her Doctorate in Counselling Psychology.

On Twitter: Fauzia = @itsFauziaKhan / Stephanie = @tiredpsych