It may be that you want a space to talk with someone who will listen, without interruption or advice giving, so that you can express your feelings honestly and think more clearly.  It may be that you are looking to gain a better understanding of your relationships and your role with others.  It could be that you are struggling to manage your fears, low mood or behaviours and you are seeking support with living your life the way you want.  Or possibly, experiences from your past are hard to let go of and you need to explore how to best move on.  

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Maybe you are seeking help on behalf of your child?

 

Counselling can help.

 

There are many different types of counselling and psychotherapy and lots of counsellors available so it can be difficult to know who to choose - integrative counsellors draw on a range of counselling approaches depending on what works best for you and what is most effective for the focus of the work.

 

When working with children, I use play and creativity to enable them to express themselves.  Words don't always offer the best language to explore our emotions - creativity can be less limiting at any age.  As adults, we might enjoy working in this way.  Equally, we may feel more comfortable exploring our behaviours and thoughts so a Cognitive Behavioural approach might work better.  We might be seeking to understand why we are stuck in patterns of relating to others that don't make us happy so Transactional Analysis might shed light on what is going on and help us change.  We may feel lost and need space to find our way at times, Person Centred Counselling offers this.  Counselling can be short or long term - it's up to you.

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With all that said,  I would encourage you to go with your gut instinct.  All the counselling research points to the fact that the strength of the therapeutic relationship is the best predictor of good outcomes.

My experience is that a significant benefit of counselling is the opportunity to build a new kind of relationship where you are the focus.  Trust, empathy and confidentiality create the right conditions for you to gain better knowledge of yourself so you need to be working with the right person for you.  

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I won't be right for everyone.  It's a very personal thing and we all work in different ways.  If you think we could work well together, or be right for your child, then I encourage you to get in touch.  If you are not sure, then do contact me anyway.  I offer an initial consultation for free to give us a chance to see if I’m the right counsellor for you; if not, I may be able to help you find someone else.