Therese Bentley

My name is Therese Bentley and I live with my husband in Solihull in the West Midlands. As a mother of four and grandmother of three, I have rich experience of the complexities, the highs and the lows of family life. I love facilitating groups. When my children were younger, I ran self-help courses on parenting which supported me through the challenges of the teenage years and beyond.

I am a qualified teacher with a PGCE and an MA in Education, and retired a few years ago from over ten years teaching Business Studies at a Sixth Form College. Before having my family, I worked in industry in various roles.

With a Certificate in Counselling, I am interested in personal development, inner healing, interpersonal relationships, and especially in inner spiritual growth, which brings me great joy. I have run courses and facilitated retreats at a Christian Retreat Centre, and am a member of a prayer group. My particular interest is in the link between deep inner personal growth and our spiritual lives. Marshall Rosenberg's use of the term "beloved divine energy" to refer to the energy of life itself, resonates deeply within me. In his words, "I connect with this energy when I connect to human beings". The practice of developing compassion has enhanced my Christian heritage of "loving God, loving neighbour and loving self". This last part has been a life-time's work for me, and NVC the most potent way I have found to learn self-compassion, and therefore a more balanced relationship with others.

I came across NVC in 2008 when I was going through pain and challenges in my own life, and it had a profound effect on me, which is why I love to share this work. I know first-hand how transformative it can be, particularly the power of deep empathy, of being deeply heard. I've personally benefitted from the insights, healing and growth that NVC offers.

I attended the last International Intensive Training (IIT) that Marshall Rosenberg offered in Albuquerque in 2011, before he died, and am inspired by his vision. NVC offers both a vision of a more peaceful and compassionate world that works for all, a set of practical, learnable skills to help achieve this, and a powerful way to inner transformation that can result in the outer changes being more likely, and more sustainable.

I am the Treasurer and Membership Secretary of this NVC-UK .com website:
therese@nvc-uk.com

I am registered with CNVC as a Certification Candidate to become a Certified Trainer.

I look forward to connecting with you.