services

What counselling is

As a talking therapy, counselling allows the exploration of previously unexplored, or unexpressed feelings or emotions in a safe, confidential environment. This involves a therapist using listening skills and reflecting back what you are sharing with them to help you to understand how your thoughts, feelings and experiences may be affecting you. It is also an opportunity for you to experience a genuine, empathic relationship set within professional boundaries. Allowing you the space to share what may be deep, difficult topics and emotions with someone you can feel safe and supported by. Something we refer to as the therapeutic relationship. It is also through this relationship that we can learn a lot about ourselves, and how we may present ourselves in our relationships. Counselling is also an opportunity to build your self-awareness, of how you think, feel and act alongside the reasons why. As well as a space in which you can come to understand yourselves and gain a deeper sense of self. To reflect on all we are and to find out how we wish to be and where we want to go in life.

What to expect from the first session

Should you choose to book an appointment with me, then we would begin with an initial consultation. In this initial session, we will have an opportunity to get to know one another, understand what it is you wish to work on and to consider ways in which we can do so. I will also go through my paperwork, which is also confidential and stored in accordance with GDPR regulations and ensure you are clear on things such a cancellation policy, payment and other admin matters. But the most important aspect of this initial session is your experience of me. As mentioned, the therapeutic relationship is a fundamental part of your counselling journey. And It’s imperative that you find a counsellor with whom you feel safe, understood and able to work with. Counselling can be a difficult process and feeling able to express this will be important. Because of this, it’s important to know that this session is not a commitment to a whole process. It is an introduction for you to see if you feel comfortable working with me and if I can help you . If so then we can arrange a time to meet at a weekly basis to work together to achieve whatever it may be that you wish to achieve. If not then there are no problems we us ending there or I can refer you to a more suitable counsellor.

Bereavement and grief

Grief is something we will all experience in life. There is no avoiding it and experiencing it can be a difficult process, sometimes feeling impossible to cope with. In our society we have many ideas around grief, and it is often seen as something to get over, move past or generally too difficult to talk about. So we often don’t. At least enough for us to fully grasp our new reality and our feelings. However, loss is often something we learn from and carry with us, even if not consciously, and it’s important for use to learn how to manage with it so that we are prepared to handle it better next time. Conversely, if we had never learnt how to, or learnt unhelpful ways of coping, then we can find these come up for us in subsequent losses. If you’ve recently suffered such a loss, or find yourself struggling to manage with your grief, then we can explore this together. Looking at your history with loses, how they’ve affected you and shaped your views around it. When working with your grief I often incorporate Tonkin’s model of growing around grief, that while the pain may remain, you can grow around it, become stronger and have a rich, fulfilling life still. I also use Worden’s four tasks of grief, to assist you in reconnecting with your life, while maintaining a connection with the one’s you have lost. As although they are gone in body, they still persist in your mind, your memories and within the things they left behind.

Who and what I can work with

Who I work with, anyone over the age of 18, regardless of gender, sexuality or age I will work in a way that is congruent, empathic and fully considering your views on your concerns and how you wish to address them. We may not be of the same generation, ethnicity or sexual orientation, but I will work from your frame of reference, from how you are feeling and seeing the world. Offering acceptance and support to you as the unique individual you are. As for what concerns I work with, as a qualified counsellor I am able to assist you in building a deeper understanding of yourself and building your own self-awareness. I can help you find yourself and your path in this world. In terms of specific concerns, I have supported people in coming to understand and manage their anxiety, bereavements, stress, relationships and to address and develop healthier coping strategies. I’ve shared how I may work with grief or relationship concerns below. Unfortunately it would be too long to detail all the major concerns people bring to counselling. However, if you’d like to know how I may work with your concerns, contact me and we can discuss this during our initial session.

Online counselling

Alongside face-to-face sessions, I also offer online sessions. Which we can do exclusively or mixed in with face-to-face sessions. These work essentially the same way as in person sessions, we will arrange a time for an initially consultation, and following this we can continue to meet on a weekly basis and I will send a session link prior to every session. Online sessions can be equally as effective as in person sessions, particularly in using cognitive behavioural therapy, or working with depression, anxiety and less complicated concerns. They are also very convenient, accommodate disabilities and remove geographic restrictions. Though working in this way would require you to have a suitable Wi-Fi-connection, a safe private space in which you can attend these sessions, and ideally a camera. We show a lot in our body language, and being able to see and work with this would greatly facilitate the counselling process. It should also be noted that online working does not work for everyone and this is something we can discuss in detail if you would like to work in this way.

Relationship concerns

Bening human, we are inherently social, it’s how we’re wired as beings. We all need other people in our lives in one way or another and because of this, there are times when they can cause us problems. Be it from breakups, loneliness, feeling out of place and unlike those around us or from keeping unhealthy, toxic relationships to meet this need. or it may be the ways we act that causes conflict in our relationships. Exploring your relationships together we can discover your views around them, how these ideas may be affecting you and where any distress may stem from. We can further explore these in terms of your self-esteem and in caring for yourself. We will also have the option to look at the relationships you have experienced throughout your life to better understand the dynamics in your relationships now and why they may have formed into what they are and how to change these to have more fulfilling, equal relationships. Looking at your relationship concerns in counselling in general is also an opportunity for you to experience a genuine, empathic relationship. In which I can share with you what I experience from you, facilitating a deep exploration into how others may perceive you and where potential relationship concerns may stem from.