Contents
What is Counselling?
Is it just listening?
How does counselling help?
Can I get medical diagnoses and medications?
What to expect in an initial consultation
Further information including payment
What is counselling?
If you’ve never had therapy before, it can be difficult to form an idea of what it is and how it can help. Much of the counselling world happens behind closed doors and is, by necessity, highly confidential. Whilst this confidentiality is crucial, this also unfortunately means that many views of therapy can often be misinformed or deal with half-truths. This can quite rightly cause concern if you want help but are not sure about talking therapy as an option. With this in mind, I wanted to write a few brief FAQ sections to hopefully lift the lid a little and help you in your choice.
It’s just listening, isn’t it?
One of the first things we are taught as practitioners is how to listen. This is a fundamental step in understanding therapy, and a bedrock to working within the profession. Listening can be an incredibly powerful and profound element of counselling, but it is also not the only element. With listening as their guide, practitioners allow themselves to understand the world through your eyes, not their own. Consequently, they will understand your pain through your perspective and work with you on this level. In the case of integrative counselling, it will also allow the practitioner to put forward different avenues of exploration, most notably aspects of different models which may be relevant and beneficial to you (e.g. Psychodynamic, CBT, Person-Centred).
How does counselling help?
Help will be different for each individual, and it will be different for every goal you set to work toward during therapy. Sometimes there is no goal, you may simply want a safe environment to gather your thoughts and explore your own feelings. More generally, however, counselling will give you a way to learn about what concerns you and how it might relate to thought patterns, beliefs, emotions, relationships and behaviours.
What this looks like in-session will be a mix of exploration and therapeutic techniques that leads to such results as uncovering new angles to pre-existing problems, helping you to discover something you never knew about yourself, or challenging entrenched thinking and behaviours.
Fundamentally, it offers you the opportunity to fully engage with yourself on a much deeper and more resonant level than perhaps you have ever been afforded before. In so doing, you gain a greater understanding of yourself and can work towards change if you would like to.
Counselling can help you with:
- Depression and anxiety;
- Difficult emotions, such as stress, low mood, worry, or anger;
- Troublesome feelings, emotions or thoughts;
- Challenging behaviours;
- Difficult life events, such as illness or bereavement;
- Problems in your relationships, be they friendships, romantic partners, work colleagues or other;
- Situations you find difficult.
Can I get medical diagnoses and prescription medications?
A therapist is trained in human behaviour, mental health, and therapeutic techniques. We do not offer diagnoses and prescription medications. For this you would require a GP, Doctor, or Psychiatrist.
What to expect in the initial 30 minute consultation
If you would like to meet for an initial online consultation, I will be there to greet you for a non-judgemental, compassionate talk about what has brought you to therapy, what you would like to achieve during our time together, and how we might work towards this. Most importantly, the consultation will also allow you the chance to see if I am the right counsellor for you. Feel free to ask any questions about anything you’re not sure about, or anything you would like to know.
Further Information
(Full Terms and Conditions will be provided to you before onset of therapy)
SESSION LENGTH & COST
- Individual sessions are 50 minutes long. The fee per session is £55, payable by bank transfer *
NUMBER OF SESSIONS & FREQUENCY
- As part of our first consultation, we can discuss how many sessions you would like to initially try.
- We will review the work at regular intervals, allowing for reflection and consideration of the remaining sessions.
- You will have the right to withdraw from therapy at any time.
- Sessions are provided on a weekly basis and as such, you will gain a weekly session slot reserved for you unless agreed otherwise. Ad-hoc interim sessions can be scheduled if requested, subject to availability.
SERVICE RESTRICTIONS
- I am currently only offering therapy services to adult clients (18+). Please refer to other counsellors or counselling services for age ranges below 18.
CONSISTENCY AND CANCELLATION OF SESSIONS
- Consistency is important in therapy. Once you book into a weekly appointment timeslot, this slot is held for you on an ongoing basis. I would encourage you to come each week, on time, in order to maximise your time in therapy.
- If, for whatever reason, you need to cancel a session, please give 24 hours’ notice. Cancellations outside of this time frame will be subject to full charge for the cancelled session.
CODE OF ETHICS AND COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
- I am a fully registered member of the British Association of Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP), belonging to and answerable to a professional national body and their Code of Ethics. If you ever feel the service hasn’t met your expectations, please feel free to bring this to the sessions. I’ll do my best to resolve any concerns. If you’re still unhappy, you can make a formal complaint to the BACP, who will support you in that process. Their website can be found at: www.bacp.co.uk.
* Prices are subject to annual yearly review.