FAQ – Frequently asked question(s):
FAQ. What kind of therapy do you offer and what is it trying to achieve?
A. I provide a good quality of care with competently delivered services to meet the client’s needs. I am committed to being moral in dealings with others and demonstrate personal straightforwardness and honesty. My aims are to achieve greater autonomy for my clients, enable increased insight and expertise in their personal relationships and a more satisfactory way of living life.
Counselling is a process which can help people to identify thoughts, emotions and behaviours as well as to discover and clarify ways of living more resourcefully and towards greater well being. Cognitive Behavioural therapy (CBT) is a structured approach that aims to help people change patterns of thinking and/or behaviour. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a form of psychotherapy that was developed to resolve symptoms resulting from disturbing and unresolved life experiences.
Integrative Psychotherapies are several treatment models which have a common factor enabling integration with the base line of other modalities
FAQ. How long is a session, how often are they held and how much do they cost?
A. Individual sessions last for one hour or 90 minutes and cost £70.00 and £80.00 respectively.
FAQ. How long might therapy last for and how does it end?
A. All psychological therapies should have a beginning middle and end. The number of sessions you get is important. For some people short or medium term help is enough to help them feel better and more able to cope. But longer term therapy may be needed for lasting change and for complex problems.
At the beginning we will be getting to know each other and deciding whether we can work together. You can take the opportunity to ask me as many questions as you wish. During this period we will form some initial structuring for our sessions including clarifying and agreeing an oral and written contract between us. We will discuss your concerns and I will offer support and understanding of your experiences from your perspective in relation to what you choose to work on.
The middle of therapy will often be about us working on your issues. I will offer empathy, respect and genuineness to support your efforts at putting together useful strategies, setting realistic goals and encourage you to take reasonable action to sustain useful change in your life. Around this time you may also wish to consider looking to make further changes.
Towards the end of therapy I will be checking out your progress through regular reviews and discussions with you. Ending therapy is best planned. This can be arranged/negotiated at the beginning contractual stage ie. “We’ll have ‘x’ amount of sessions.” Or the ending can be collaboratively planned and facilitated between us in review. Please note: A planned ending session is always preferable, however as stated in my ‘working agreement’ (a copy of which you will be asked to read, agree and sign at the beginning of therapy), there could be certain circumstances when I may temporarily or permanently suspend therapy, but I will always inform/discuss this possibility with you beforehand
FAQ. How long before I start to feel better?
A. It’s not unusual to sometimes feel worse before you feel better and because I am aware of how the beginning of therapy can sometimes arouse strong experiences of feeling vulnerable I will always work to provide a good standard of practice and care to make you feel heard, valued and respected, and regularly checking that the therapeutic relationship is working
FAQ. Can I contact you in between sessions if I need to?
A. Within our initial working contractual agreement the boundaries of our therapeutic relationship and client support will be explained and discussed. Ethically, I feel it would not be helpful for your counselling process if you were to contact me in between sessions for reasons other than to cancel or re-arrange appointments.
FAQ. What training have you had, how many years have you been practising?
A. I have been a therapist in private practice since 1999. I am a fully qualified and experienced integrative therapist, lecturer and trainer in all aspects of Counselling and Counselling Studies. My qualifications can be viewed via the Qualifications tab at the top of this page
