Umberto Crisanti

Professional Profile

Umberto is a fully qualified and BABCP-accredited Cognitive Behavioural Therapist (CBT) and Supervisor, EMDR Therapist and Constructive Counsellor, working with Think CBT from Canterbury, Kent.

Umberto is a compassionate, caring and experienced therapist, with 20 years’ experience working within a wide variety of clinical settings. He qualified as a Psychologist in 2004 in Italy, and then trained for a further 4 years and qualified as a Cognitive Constructivist Psychotherapist. Cognitive Constructive Therapy is a non-blaming approach to counselling, based on attachment theory, which aims to help clients to develop a conceptual reframing of the past that permits a new balanced and joyful future. He then moved to the UK and trained to become accredited as a BABCP CBT Therapist, practicing in an NHS Trust for 10 years, offering CBT to adults with a wide range of emotional, cognitive behavioural and adjustments problems such as anxiety, stress, depression and relationship problems. As part of his NHS therapeutic work, he qualified as a BABCP CBT Supervisor, providing guidance to over 50 clinicians on suicide risk screening, as well as generally empowering their reflective practice.

Since 2019, Umberto has been invited to speak annually at the USERN (Universal Scientific Education and Research Network) conference, which aims to promote peaceful and humanitarian education and research globally.

Since leaving the NHS in 2020, Umberto has developed his private practice based in Canterbury, Kent.

Umberto has particular interest and expertise in working with trauma. Areas treated with EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) include:

Phobias and Fears
Fear of Driving
Fear of Needles or Medical Procedures
Fear of Choking or Swallowing
Fear of Vomiting (Emetophobia)
Blushing and Fear of Embarrassment
Fear of Dental Treatment

Compulsions and Repetitive Behaviours
Trichotillomania (Hair-Pulling)
Dermatillomania (Skin-Picking)
Skin Biting or Nail Biting
Compulsive Checking (e.g. locks, appliances)
Compulsive Cleaning (e.g. fear of germs)

Food and Body-Related Distress
Binge Eating or Emotional Overeating
Emotional Eating in Response to Stress or Rejection

Social and Performance Difficulties
Panic When Speaking in Meetings or Presenting
Avoidance of Social Situations Due to Shame
Shame or Flashbacks from School Experiences

In CBT he works with a range of relationship and attachment difficulties, including:
Relationship – Attachment Issues (e.g. fear of abandonment, difficulty with closeness or trust)
Relationship – Codependency (e.g. putting others first, difficulty being alone, needing approval)
Relationship – Communication Difficulties (e.g. feeling unheard, avoiding conflict, frequent misunderstandings)
Relationship – Doubts in the Relationship (e.g. uncertainty about your partner or the future of the relationship)
Relationship – Infidelity, Affairs, and Betrayals (e.g. rebuilding trust, coping with emotional fallout)
Relationship – Fear of Rejection or Criticism (e.g. seeking reassurance, avoiding emotional risk)
Relationship – Low Self-Worth (e.g. feeling not good enough, comparing yourself to others)
Relationship – Difficulty Setting Boundaries (e.g. saying yes when you mean no, fear of upsetting others)
Relationship – Emotional Dependency (e.g. needing constant reassurance, anxiety when apart)
Relationship – Repeating Unhealthy Patterns (e.g. choosing unavailable partners, reenacting past dynamics)

This work can be open-ended or structured as a one-off consultation with psychoeducation and guidance tailored to your needs.

Umberto has been a lifetime martial art enthusiast and avid trainer, practising Japanese Jiu-jitsu, Tai Chi and Muay Thai. He also enjoys playing football on an amateur level and can provide therapy to athletes who struggle with trauma, performance anxiety and depression.

Umberto works calmly and kindly with authenticity and integrity. He can be with you for a short intervention, or for long term therapy to examine where you are in your life, to bring the unconscious to the surface and to understand your deep-rooted feelings. Umberto aims for his clients to find wholeness and meaning, and for them to feel empowered to be able to leave therapy as soon as possible and continue their journey on their own. 

Models and Methods

Umberto is trained to use the following therapeutic approaches in his practice, tailoring the treatment to each client’s particular needs:

• BABCP Accredited CBT Therapist
• CBT - Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
• CBT - Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Supervisor
• Cognitive Constructive Psychotherapist
• EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing
• LTC certificate (Long term conditions and Medically Unexplained Symptoms)
• Mindfulness
• Person-centred therapy
• Transactional Analysis

Qualifications & training

• EMDR, Standard EMDR training as defined by the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) with some additional protocols included in Part 3. Member of EMDR Association UK, 2021.
• LTC certificate (Long Term Conditions and Medically Unexplained Symptoms), 2018
• BABCP CBT Supervisor, from March 2016.
• BABCP accreditation, from August 2012.
• MBCT (Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy), 2012.
• BPS, from 2009 to 2017
• Cognitive-Constructive Psychotherapist (Professional Doctorate in Counselling Psychotherapy) December 2009.
• MSc Psychologist, Magna Cum Laude, University of Palermo, Italy, 2004.
• BSc in Psychology, University of Palermo, Italy, 2002.

Client testimonials:

"I have never had any kind of therapy before. I have found this process incredibly helpful and supportive. I feel I have been guided skilfully on a path to help me address the areas that have been causing me stress."

"When I first was referred I didn't want to come, it took a lot of f***ing persuading. After the third session, I realised you were a nice counsellor and a human being. Some of the advice was helpful and I feel more in control and able to put my foot down with X. I have learned that I've got the right to say no and it is okay to ask for help. All the coping mechanisms seem to be working".

"It's great that I can talk and you don't tell me how to solve problems but you give me hints. I felt safe and never judged."

"It's been amazing, it has made so much sense. It's practical but you need to understand what it is about, and then you understand what's going on"

"It was a great safe space to openly talk about how I was feeling and even sometimes when I didn't really know how I was feeling and I went in a bit of a spiral of words, somehow my ramblings made sense to you. I really liked how it was a great way to get an understanding of myself whereas before I thought therapy was a place where the therapist sits there and tells you about yourself. I am happy I was in control of the process of getting those self insights"

"I feel it has really benefitted me and it has given me tools to work with in the future. I have skills and strategies that I can use to prevent me from becoming overwhelmed"

"You have listened to me, and you have not prompted me. This has made me feel comfortable has enabled me to feel better and recover. And this helped me to make me understand how I really feel. And I thank you for that. "

"It's been really helpful. It has stopped my worry and I thought I wouldn't have been able to stop it, but I can now. I learned a lot.

Ethical standards

Umberto abides by the policies and ethical standards laid down by the BABCP, and he has full professional indemnity to work as a therapist in the UK. 

If you want to book an appointment, please click on the blue book appointment button adjacent to his profile picture. He will call you to discuss therapy options before confirming your first therapy appointment.