How I work
My relationship with you is collaborative; the way I see it is that you are in the driving seat and I am your navigator. The way I would work with you is along these lines: In the early stages I invite you to tell me about yourself; this is the information gathering stage. I like to know about your relationships with your family, growing up and presently. Key events in your life; times of transition; being in education / work; friendships; your values and beliefs; what is important to you. How life has been, how it is now-and what you would like to be different. This is how we begin the journey towards change.
Here is an outline our relationship would likely follow:
- Contact is initiated by you
- We have an obligation-free phone call so you can get a sense of me and how I work, and ask any questions you may have
- If we agree that working together feels right we arrange an initial session
- I find out more about you and what has brought you to therapy
- I ask where you are in your life now and where would you like to be
- We work together to help you achieve your desired outcomes
- We review periodically to ensure that the therapy is meeting your needs
In the beginning you may discover experiences that you hadn’t realized were contributing to your present difficulties. It is quite common for past experiences to be buried, consciously or subconsciously; discovering and revisiting them can be illuminating and help to make sense of present difficulties. Anxiety, for example, is often present in our adult lives even though the seed was planted in childhood. There are myriad explanations as to why anxiety and other debilitating conditions remain with us in adulthood.
When these experiences are faced and unraveled, space can be created for growth and change. While our past experiences cannot be changed, they need not define us. Many of our past behaviours were resourceful states that served us well at the time; in adulthood, we discover that these past behaviours now hinder, rather than help, us. Behavioural change and new ways of thinking can be developed that are better suited to our present situation and needs.
Therapy is a process of movement and change. As we go along, what initially brought you to therapy may shift to something quite different as time passes; much like life in general, nothing is carved in stone. My approach is tailored to your needs; I believe that therapy should fit the individual, not the other way around.
Contact me in confidence on: tel 07706 813 692 or email:
