Counselling
What happens in the first session?
In our first session we will cover a bit of ground and explore the problems you face and talk about how you are experiencing your life and the relationships, around you. The first session is also a little more directive and includes gathering information. We will go through an agreement together and cover limits to confidentiality and cancelations etc.
It can take a bit of time to settle into the session(s) and you will be assessing me too, and getting a sense of how it might be if we continue our work together.
If we decide to continue then we will agree a regular weekly appointment and perhaps an initial number of sessions, within a therapeutic agreement. Medium to open ended or longer term work 6 months + allows for deeper explorations. However, we can work also work in the short term, 3-6 months and briefly 6-12 weeks. It depends on your circumstance and requirements. I’t does take at least 6-8 weeks to really find a rhythm together and begin to experience differences. We will have regular reviews/check ins, this allows you to also let me know what you have found useful, or what has not.
Finding the right Counsellor
I’t can be daunting at first, and particularly so if you have not had counselling before.
We will discuss how I work, and begin to explore what your expectations of counselling might be. We can also talk through any concerns you may have regarding the counselling process, or the agreement we make. There is no obligation to continue but if it feels like we can make progress together then we proceed.
My Approach
I will work with you in a way that is directed by you, in collaboration with me where our relationship is central to the work. I will look to follow the thread of how you experience life and respond to what you share, sometimes it might feel challenging, but we will work at your pace. We work very much in the here and now, you might want to bring something about your past or your present.
I know that with the right conditions, great strides can be made in that we work towards you trusting more in your own self. I seek to support you in gaining clarity and confidence to make the change you need to do in a way that ins tangible and sustainable.
If you wanted to know more about how to use creative methods within the sessions we can incorporate that, sometimes it helps when words are not forthcoming, and you ‘don’t know’. I can offer a variety of tools for this.
Along with traditional talking therapy; thinking and looking at thoughts, behaviours and actions my approach includes working with the body, paying attention to feelings, sensations and posture combined with talking this is very effective. Sometimes, that might include Emotional Freedom Technique, (tapping), finding suitable resources together, this could be: breath work, grounding, visualisation and the felt sense, coupled with mindfulness. These methods support the body or nervous system come back into balance. Working with the nervous system is imperative because states of distress- such as stress, anxiety and numbness or depression get activated and we want to find ways to move through those states.
Therefore I will work with you in a way that is holistic. Grounded in the mind, body and energy.
Lastly, It doesn’t always have to be so serious, it can be everything and you can bring anything you want and feel valued.
Contact me here to find out more.