Services

Counselling

Counselling provides space to explore personal difficulties and develop new ways of understanding and coping.

This is a process of exploration, giving you the possibility of looking at your current situation in a new light. You are empowered to clarify, identify and understand the current crises in your life. Counselling will also allow you examine the options and choices available to you to either resolve the situation or learn to accept it within your current life style.

Talking to a counsellor helps you to make sense of what's going on in your life and allows you to gain a greater understanding of yourself. Counselling can help you gain a clearer perspective on what you want from life, it can heighten your acceptance of yourself and greatly improve your self-esteem. Seeking help from a counsellor can enable greater choices in your life , help you to look at the changes that you want or need to make and can help reduce confusion.

As a counsellor, I will listen attentively and respectfully to you. I will try and understand your life from your perspective and will try and help you to see things differently, from another possibly more positive view-point. Because I have your best interests at the core of my practice, I do not judge or exploit you in any way. My goal as a counsellor is to help you deal with the crises and issues that are present in your life. In the sessions you can explore all aspects of your life and feelings. You can talk freely and openly about them in ways that can be difficult with friends or family. Acceptance and respect for you as a person are central to the way I work and as the relationship develops I would hope your trust of me and the process will deepen and grow.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy aims for deeper exploration, connecting present challenges to past experiences and fostering growth and change. Counselling and Psychotherapy are terms that are often used interchageably. However there are some fundamental differences between the two. Counselling involves exploring your current situation and needs at a basic level and allowing you to make choices and decisions that can improve your current situation.

Psychotherapy explores the clients history and shines a light on unconscious behaviours, bringing a deeper understading of the clients behaviours. This enables the client to understand what triggers these behaviours and make the necessary changes to his / her life situation. Psychotherapy can assist in the clients journey of self-discovery, growth and development as a person.

There are many techniques of psychotherapy and these are based on observation, research and the development of several theories through decades of work by therapists. Some of the underlying principles of psychotherapy are:

• Practicing new behavious will change other behaviours.
• New expereinces can motivate us to take action, change and grow.
• Developing a new awareness and insights brings about change in our understanding of ourselves, responses to sitautions and the choices we make.
• Advice, directions and techniques are not nearly as important as the therapeutic relationship and the resources that the person brings into therapy.

My approach to psychotherapy and counselling involve the use of several techniques such as Person Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Reality Therapy or Choice Theory and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. These theories have all been developed over the years since Sigmund Freud first began his practice of Psychoanalysis in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I work with these theories in a Pluralistic way, integrating them in a way that works most efficiently for my clients.

Clinical Supervision

Supervision for counsellors and professionals in helping roles, focusing on reflection, support, and professional development.

The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) lists supervision as a value of the Ethical Framework and all registered members must agree to engage in supervision appropriate to their practice.