Child Centred therapy

The path into adulthood is littered with complexities, questions, angst, transformations, and anxiety. Add to that a social media world that can distort reality and offer a virtual world where both good and bad fantasy can rule.

Like us all, young people often feel judged, labeled and made to feel they are simply ‘not good enough’. This leaves us vulnerable to anxiety, depression, self doubt with solace sometimes seemingly on offer in self harm, toxic relationships, substance abuse.

Children and Young People (CYP) are gaining independence and autonomy, not always in alignment with one’s individual speed of development. A lot of questions and confusion which they may want to explore without feeling they are being controlled, labelled, judged.

I am a qualified, BACP registered private practitioner, and offer a safe space where expression is nurtured, trust is cultivated and unconditional positive regard is upheld. Working independently means therapy is not subject to long waiting lists or school term/holidays, but can be continuous and uninterrupted.

Q&A

Can I bring a friend, partner, family member? I work in person with you on a 1-1 basis, so no-one else will be in the room. However, if you feel you would like to have a parent or carer sit in on a review, we can arrange for this and bring this person in for the review piece.

What happens in the therapy room? First and foremost, we ensure this is a safe space and place for you to be yourself. This also means we get to know each other a little bit, and find ways of working that will work for you. For example, if you feel comfortable being creative, there can be space made for media, drawing, etc.

Mainly, this is a space for you to talk, interact, share, create and maybe even play the odd game or two.

So you are not an analyst or psychiatrist? No, I am here to really listen to you without judgement and walk alongside you. Together we come up with answers and solutions.

I understand that there will be a contract between you and my parents. How much transparency is there here? How do I find out what was agreed between you and my parents? Yes, there may be a contract with your parent(s) but there will also be a similar contract between you and I. It is important that you feel you want to have counselling. I want to understand what YOU want to achieve, so this becomes your agenda, not anyone else’s.

Q&A for parents

Do you work with children and young people (CYP)? I work with 11-18 year olds and will announce (on this site) when I have availability for 4-11 year olds

What is next? First I arrange for a 1-1 assessment phone call with you, the parent of person with parental responsibility. This is free of charge. Next is a first session with the young person where I will ask similar assessment questions, get acquainted and generally start build a relationship. This is now the first session and is chargeable.

Any therapies you do not offer ? I work Integratively (click here for more:Integrative counselling) which may include some Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) but please note that I am not a CBT only therapist. I do not offer Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) .

Do I come into the room and stay with my child during the session? No, sessions are strictly confidential and on a 1-1 basis. My practice is located in a high street with coffee bars, parking, a library etc nearby so it is easy to stay in the vicinity if you wish to wait.

What guarantees do you offer for counselling to be successful? The definition of success here is very individual. The question is “What does your Child/ Young Person want to get out of counselling? “ Therapy can feel like hard work, there may be a lot of processing of emotion and feelings, needing to be open and courageous and willing to hear and accept what our emotional make up is. Success starts with your child’s will to enter and commit to therapy - from there we can create that safe and trustful environment where your child can express themselves.

Do you report back to me? No, but I can give you a periodic progress call. This will not divulge the content of the sessions though. Should your child want to talk to you about something in the session, or want you present in a review, we can arrange for this. Note that this is not standard but an exception.,

We are waiting to have a school counsellor too / My daughter is seeing the school counsellor too -- is that a problem? Yes, it is important that you remain with one counsellor to avoid overlap, conflict and confusion. If you are offered extra counselling whilst your child is already in therapy with me, we would need to cease or pause sessions. This can be disruptive for your child, so it is important to discuss this first (let’s not forget asking what your child wants here) and allow us for a fitting ending rather than halting abruptly.

Do you offer discounts? I believe counselling therapy should be available to everyone. We can have a conversation around the possibilities of concessionary rates, which is circumstance led.