How can counselling help
We are all imperfect, messy beings
There are many reasons for seeking therapy and as an experienced psychotherapeutic counsellor, I have found that these reasons are often incredibly painful.
Perhaps you are holding onto distress from a difficult childhood, grieving the loss of a meaningful relationship, or wondering what your purpose is.
You may have been hiding your pain for a while and managing daily life well but inside, feel exhausted and alone from putting on a mask. As your therapist, I can help you to make sense of the feelings experienced and enable you to see difficulties in a more manageable way.
My Approach
- Integrative approach, blending psychodynamic, person-centred, and behavioural theories to tailor sessions to fit your unique needs and goals.
- Relational approach, prioritising congruence, non-judgement and empathy to enhance self-awareness, self-understanding and self-acceptance and to support you in times of distress and trauma.
- Interweaving alternative theories such as Internal Family Systems or Transactional Analysis, to identify different parts within to heal your inner child or quieten the critical parent.
Recognising we are all imperfect humans with strengths, flaws, valid lived experiences and unique dreams. I can support you with acknowledging your humanness and letting go of unrealistic expectations of self and others.
Therapy is an intimate relationship that often replicates healthy or unhealthy dynamics in personal relationships outside the therapy room. Exploring this transference can lead to valuable insights and information on patterns of behaviour that you would like to stay the same or change.
Relational and Individualised
A key aspect of my work is to bring clarity to unhealthy behaviours that you may be using to distract, avoid or numb painful thoughts and feelings. I work with you to expand your tolerance of discomfort, thereby releasing you to make healthier choices, learn emotional regulation and gain control of your negative thoughts.
Difficult childhood and adult experiences can cause us to disconnect from ourselves, our needs and our dreams. As your therapist, my role is to raise self-awareness to build a loving self-connection, perhaps for the first time. Many of my clients are unaware they are even in a relationship with themselves, so familiar are they to prioritising others over their own needs.
Therapy is also an opportunity to gain clarity on the role you are playing in the quality of your life. It takes courage to look within and take ownership of choices that have caused you, and others suffering. I can help you to take accountability when needed from a place of non-judgement and robust caring support, rather than shame or blame. This emotional maturity helps you move closer to the person you want to be, living the life you want to live.
Trauma Informed
Trauma takes many forms. You may have experienced a break up that was traumatic, lost a loved one, been in an accident or experienced childhood abuse.
Often clients struggle to label experiences as traumatic, often dismissing their experiences as 'not that bad'. In reality, what's traumatic to an adult can be different for a child. A mother's preference for a sibling or a father's regular put downs are deeply traumatic. Distressing childhood experiences can also create limiting negative self-beliefs such as 'I am not worthy' or 'I am stupid'. Painful core beliefs have a detrimental impact for many years and can cause us to develop unhealthy behaviours to numb these wounds or choose relationships that exploit this self-doubt.
Another debilitating consequence of trauma is our nervous systems reaction to it, becoming stuck in a prolonged threat response. This may look like switching between hyperalert and on the go all the time or shutting down and social withdrawal. I work with you to restore safety to your nervous system and expanding your inner and outer resources to cope.
I blend evidence based approaches to support you such as polyvagal theory, mindfulness, grounding and somatic exercises to stabilise the nervous system and release trauma stored in the body.
I have specialist trauma training in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing) a therapy specifically designed to release trauma stored in the body and process PTSD symptoms and distressing memories. We are not defined by our trauma, there is hope.
Cost of sessions
- £75 - 50 minute in person or online session
- Discount available for block bookings
- Concessions rates available
Get in touch
If you would like to learn more, I offer a free no obligation phone call to discuss your needs, so please do get in touch.
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