What To Expect

The fact you've made it onto my website is a fantastic sign of prioritising yourself. Counselling works because there are no judgements or stigmas from the counsellor and you don't have to "watch what you say" like you might do around friends and family. My interest is helping you with whatever needs, issues or problems you might be facing. Having a supporter with solely your interests at heart can help facilitate that change you are hoping for. If you have goals to work towards, fantastic. We can tackle them together. And if you don't? That's okay too, Sometimes the goal is just a different mindset or finding peace. 

No, not at all. CBT or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a form of therapy that is goal orientated and centres around "fixing" a particular problem. It is particularly effective with problems such as anxiety or some phobias. The type of therapy I offer is talking therapy where we explore not only the problem, but the origins to try and tackle it completely. Where CBT will set you tasks or homework, I will focus our sessions in the room and use our time there as effectively as possible. Neither is better than the other, it is dependant on the problem and the person. 

Counselling is a collaboration between counsellor and client. The counsellor guides and supports you along the way, but the work comes from you. I cannot give you the answers or tell you what to do, there is definitely a personal commitment element required to get the most out of sessions. Hopefully with guidance you can explore in greater depth your problems and notice patterns of behaviour. By developing healthier coping strategies and increasing self-awareness, you should have the tools to build a more resilient future. There is no guarantee it will work, but with time and being open to the process, change is possible. 

I'm sorry I wasn't available at the time you contacted me, I might have been in a session with another client, supervision or another professional commitment. I will endeavour to return your email at my earliest availability. In the meantime, I would ask for 48 hours grace to respond to communications. I have strict working hours for my health and will not reply outside of those hours. Sit tight, I'll respond as soon as I am able!

I understand that therapy can be overwhelming at times and you might need a break, identifying this is a huge achievement that you should be proud of. Prioritising your needs is imperative to achieve your goals. I would ask that you mention this to me in person at our next session so we can make a plan moving forward that will work best for you. If that's taking a break, stopping sessions completely or even moving them from weekly meetings to fortnightly or monthly. If talking is too difficult for you, please email me. I am here to support you on this journey.

Should you wish to end sessions you can do this at any time, I would just ask for a little notice to ensure that our last session is a positive end to reflect our work together. We can use this time to reflect upon your journey, your goals set initially and at any reviews and celebrate your progress.

If you wish to restart sessions in the future, just contact me in the usual way.

Like many individuals, I am active on select social media sites and my accounts are restricted view to protect my family's privacy. I do not accept social media requests from current or former clients to uphold boundaries and the integrity of our time together. I infrequently check my private messages on those platforms so please contact me via email or on the contact section of this website to ensure a timely reply. I hope you understand my reasons for doing this. 

This can be a long and drawn out answer but essentially psychotherapy delves deeper into the origins of your problems and is typically a long-term therapeutic journey. Counselling is shorter term focusing on your goals and problems in the here and now.