Why have counselling?
How happy are you? Not as happy as you would like, perhaps. Understanding how to change that and improve life can feel overwhelming and unachievable. Together we can begin to make sense of what you feel and enable you to see your life from a new perspective. By exploring your feelings in a safe and caring environment, you can change the rest of your life.
You might have a more specific
issue to deal with, such as:
- Relationship problems
- Depression
- Anxiety
- The effects of abuse
- Bereavement
- Chronic pain or physical illness
- Anger
About me
I am an accredited member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. I have been working as a counsellor for 25 years, in a wide variety of settings. My practice is currently in Child Okeford, Dorset.
I am a psychodynamic counsellor. This means that I look at issues which you are struggling with currently, in relation to the earliest connections in your life. Often, patterns of behaviour and your emotional responses are repeated over and over again. By learning to recognise them and how they connect, you can begin to take charge of them and start to change your life.
Qualifications:
- Certificate in Counselling Skills and Attitudes, Westminster Pastoral Foundation
- Diploma in Psychodynamic Counselling and Therapy in the Community, Manor House Centre
for Psychotherapy and Counselling - Certificate in the Study of the Couple Relationship, Tavistock Relationships
- Advanced Certificate in the Study of the Couple Relationship, Tavistock Relationships
Working together
I work with individuals and couples.
If you are interested in a course of counselling, the first step is an assessment. The purpose of the assessment is to talk about why you think you would like some counselling, a little about your earlier life, and for us to decide if working together could be helpful. This first session lasts up to 90 minutes.
Thereafter counselling sessions last 50 minutes. Your counselling session will be at the same time each week. It is a space reserved for you. If for any reason you are unable to attend, where possible I will try to arrange an alternative appointment. Sessions cancelled with less than a week’s notice will be charged for.
A course of counselling costs £45 per session, or £70 per session for couples. I have a limited number of reduced fee places for individuals which can be discussed.
What is psychodynamic counselling?
Psychodynamic counselling is a deep, and sometimes challenging form of therapy, but one which provides lasting results.
Counselling is about talking to someone who is impartial and not personally connected to your situation. It is often a process which enables you to reflect on your thoughts and feelings, and to make better sense of them.
The environment in which you grew up, your relationships with parents, carers, siblings and other close family or friends, significant or traumatic events which you experienced, and how you felt and dealt with life at the time: all these make up the emotions that you feel.
Many of those feelings and emotions may lie in your unconscious, and so you are not aware of them consciously. They may present as niggling irritations, unexplained sadness, anxiety, fear, anger, and in dreams. Psychodynamic counselling seeks to make those thoughts and feelings conscious by exploring where they have come from and what they are linked to. Making sense of your feelings enables change moving forward.
