MY APPROACH
MY PRACTICE
My approach is Transactional Analysis (TA) psychotherapy. In its simplest terms it is a modern psychology that was designed to promote personal growth and change. It looks at how people communicate and behave. It develops explanations as how we may continue to re-play childhood strategies in adult life, even when these produce results that can be self-defeating and painful. It looks at our relationships in the past and present, and how our relational style impacts on our wellbeing and the choices we make. Understanding and improving how we relate to others can create the conditions we need for growth and fulfilment.
I offer both short and long-term counselling. Short-term therapy can be very effective for specific concerns, or immediate goals, whereas long term, open-ended therapy is more beneficial for more complex difficulties. Selecting the right type of counselling for you would be discussed during your initial session.
My approach is encouraging, supportive, and forward-looking. Therapy is held in a safe, calm and confidential space where you can identify and work through whatever is troubling you.
IN THE THERAPY ROOM
We talk about where your problems might originate. We do this at a pace you feel comfortable with. I don’t make judgements or tell you what to do. I aim to help you work out why you might be feeling the way you do and find more helpful patterns of behaving, feeling and thinking.
I enable you to find the resources within yourself and outside of yourself to resolve whatever issues you want to resolve. I support you to look at how unconscious decisions you made years ago might not be serving you today.
THE INITIAL CONSULTATION
It is not uncommon to feel apprehensive about starting counselling. The first encounter can be both a relief and a source of anxiety. Knowing what to expect can help you feel more prepared and less nervous about meeting.
The first session is a consultation and lasts 50 minutes. It helps ease you into counselling and initiates the process of working together to understand some of the difficulties that may have led you to seek help. This initial consultation is structured differently to on-going counselling sessions. I am likely to ask questions about the concerns you want to focus on and how you would like your life to be after therapy.
The initial consultation helps you decide if counselling could be helpful for you, provides an opportunity to discuss any concerns you may have and allows you to decide whether you are going to feel comfortable working with me. The consultation is also an opportunity for me to decide whether I am a good fit for you. By the end of the session, we can then decide whether to continue with further appointments.
The initial consultation does not commit you to continuing with counselling.