My road to personal discovery has been an interesting one.  Having always been a people lover, I took my interest in people to the streets of Hollywood Blvd., working as a volunteer for a homeless shelter.  Most had left their original homes to find fame and fortune in tinsel-town.  Needless to say, most did not have their dreams fulfilled, and myself and others did our best to pick up the broken pieces of their shattered hopes and dreams.  I learnt alot about human drive and suffering.  I also learned alot about myself and I knew then that I would always be at the 'coal-face' of meeting people wherever they were at in their lives.

Having become acquainted with both the known and the unknown,  I quickly came to realise that human need and suffering is not limited to the physical or tangible areas of life, but also very much related to our psychological, emotional and spiritual needs as well. My interest then began to focus on learning what was necessary to enlighten and educate people on meeting their own needs, whatever situation or circumstances they were involved in.  Over thirty years later I was contacted by one of those Hollywood homeless(17 at the time) via Facebook and this is what she had to say: "you always took the time to care and listen...because of you I went on to study and became a Social Worker helping others as you helped me”  I realise how priviledeged I am to be involved in people's lives at times of struggle and adversity and always aim to make a meaningful difference in their lives.

It was during this phase of my life that I met my English husband, which eventually led to my move to the UK.  I have continued my work with people, focussing on Youth.  I worked for the local authority Youth Service for 16 years, gaining a post-graduate degree in Youth and Community Work from Brunel Universitiy, London (2009).  During this time I also worked for a Youth Homelessness Project, which led me to do funded research on Access to Mental Health Services for the Young Homeless in Surrey (West Surrey Health Authority, 1997).  We know from Maslow's 'hierarchy of needs' that until someone's basic physical and resource needs are met, they cannot begin to focus on their emotional and psychological needs.  As a result of this research I was comissioned by Hampshire DAT and Primary Care Trust along with the Hart Local Authority to focus on Access to Services for Substance Misusers, which I undertook and completed in 2000.

Part of this research revealed that drinking and recreational drug use was becoming increasingly problematic for youth.  It leads to aggression and conflict with the law as well as within relationships.  A request for help from a youth with substance and anger problems, led me to look for a suitable training for 'anger management' specifically.  I researched the whole of Britain and after many enquires decided that the BAAM programme was the one to research further.  After attending a 3 day Beating Anger programme, I knew that I had found the best work being done around anger in this country, particularly for young people, as the programme is psycho-educational as well as experiential.  I subsequently trained and received a Diploma in Anger Management with the British Association of Anger Management and have been a Facilitator and Trainer for the organisation for 10 years, as well as securing the franchise for Beating Anger Guildford the service delivery arm of the British Association of Anger Management.  A longstanding collegue who worked with me in the Youth Service, J. Riley, has made these comments about my professional skills: "Linda is a creative facilitator who enables others to learn about themselves in a safe and trusting environment...and in my opinion the key to Linda's professional success is her integrity and genuine nature".  Mike Fisher, the Founder and Director of the British Association of Anger Management has said: "Linda is a master facilitator, she has empathy for her client group, but also has learned how not to take anything they say or do personally".

In addition to Anger Management, I am also trained in the Triple P Parenting Programme and have worked as a Parenting Specialist for Hampshire County Council.   I am also a trained Domestic Violence facilitator for male  groups with the Hampton Trust.  For those experienceing Post Traumatic Stress and Trauma I am also trained in Traumatic Incident Reduction or TIR.