About Us
Evangelia was born in Greece in 1975 and always loved teaching, music and dancing. Her father had a physical disability; he was affected by Polio when he was a baby and always had difficulties in his posture and walk pattern. He was her inspiration to want to help other people with disabilities because she loved him deeply and unconditionally. He never gave up and worked extremely hard all of his life.
Evangelia grew up learning what it means to give and not necessarily waiting to get something back, how to be grateful for what you have, and how to get your strength together when things become difficult and life is a big challenge. These are values of resilience, hope and togetherness.
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She came to UK in 2002 after getting a scholarship from Athens-Greece and The Institute of Public Scholarships. Evangelia is forever grateful to IKY for the opportunity she was given.
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Evangelia completed her MSc in Paediatric OT and started working in the NHS from 2003 until 2018 in various settings: Adolescent Mental Health Inpatient Services, Paediatric Community Services and Paediatric Therapies. More recently she had worked for the private sector as Head of a Mental health Service and Head of School. Today, Evangelis is the Head of Adult Mental Health Services in Community in East London as well as the Lead OT for a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit in the same area.
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As an experienced Occupational Therapist myself, she has seen the massive impact that Occupational Therapy can have in people's lives of all ages, especially in Mental Health. Occupational Therapy is recognised as the catalyst for recovery and independence that brings together social, medical and psychological theories and models of practice to create a unique approach that sees the person wholistically.
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In Life-OT, a new service offer for all children and young People as well as adults in Havering and surrounding Boroughs, we share the values of resilience, togetherness and hope.
Life-OT is here to support everyone who needs advice, guidance, therapeutic input or professional mentoring. We aim to provide individualised and highly personalised interventions that do not only meet the needs but exceed expectations. We do not offer magic solutions and cannot promise miracles. What we can promise is honesty, co-production, collaboration and engagement in order to empower the individuals to maximise their independence in their daily lives.
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Life-OT can support children, young people and adult service users as well as their families and carers who face challenges with mental health issues, learning difficulties and related issues such as:
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Hand writing difficulties
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Sensory Processing challenges
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Fine motor and gross motor skills difficulties
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Difficulties with Self-Esteem
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Challenging behaviour
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ASD
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Depression
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Anxiety
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Relationship Difficulties
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Social Skills difficulties
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Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
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Chronic Mental Health issues
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Professional/Career Issues
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College/Graduate School Issues
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Medical and Health Concerns
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Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
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Other Issues
Kristina is an experienced OT who is very passionate and approachable. Since completing her degree in psychology in 2011 she worked in various mental health settings with young people and adults which included hospital and community services as well as supported accommodation. She was inspired to become an occupational therapist after working as an assistant in a community mental health team where she fell in love with the practical and systemic approach as well as group therapy.
After qualifying she also worked in a physical health setting which included working on the paediatric orthopaedic and sarcoma ward. She also volunteered in Nepal at a home for children with neurodevelopmental conditions, where she created a multi-sensory room and trained the staff on how to use the room as well as on other areas such as posture.
All of her experiences have not only strengthened her clinical skills, but it has also provided her with great opportunities of working with individuals from various backgrounds and ages. Kristina is competent in using standardised and observational assessments, adapting/adjusting individual’s occupation or their environment to enable them to participate in meaningful activities. Kristina applies different frame of references such as cognitive behavioural theories as well as sensory processing to address the individual’s specific needs.
Kristina is very passionate about providing person-centred care using occupational therapy models to assess individual’s needs, implementing and monitoring their goals to achieve a better quality of life. She always strives towards achieving exceptional outcomes for individuals by collaboratively reflecting and reviewing their progress and allowing them to take control of their recovery.
When she is not working, Kristina likes to keep active through going on hikes, running, yoga or playing sports such as squash and basketball. Kristina also enjoys reading and recently started to engage in some creative writing.
Kristina has said: “I am proud to be part of Life OT and its vision of empowering individuals to establish a strong identity through meaningful occupations, by engaging in nurturing, holistic and collaborative work with individuals”.
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Our Approach
Mental Health has always been our passion. We are an Occupational therapy service with extensive experience, 35 years. We believe in empowering individuals to maximize their skills and achieve independence in their daily life regardless of their struggles and challenges. Developing and maintaining a secure and strong Occupational Identity, with meaningful occupational roles, self-empowerment, self-esteem and resilience is our priority. Our approach follows the strong Principles of the Model of Human Occupation-MOHO as well as the Recovery Model. Occupational challenges are opportunities to maximize and support the individual to learn new skills or re-discover lost ones.These same challenges are faced by the individual's family/carers/peers/physical and social environment. We aim in supporting and providing bespoke recommendations offering a holistic approach to the individual and their context according to their needs.
About Evangelia Theochari
Experienced Service Head and senior leader with a demonstrated history of working in the hospital & health care industry as well as Special Education (SEMH). Highly Skilled in Adolescent Mental Health, Developmental Trauma, Sensory Processing approaches and interventions, Coaching, Budget management, Case Management, Clinical and Management Supervision, and Occupational Therapy Interventions-evidence based practice. Strong professional support with a highly inclusive and analytical thinking, strong budget management, risk management and service restructure fit for the future .