'The Psychotherapeutic Counsellor'

Individual, Couples & Autistic Adult Counselling Service in Chelmsford

Counselling & Psychotherapy in Essex

Relationships in your life

Relationship counselling can be beneficial to people at many stages of their relationship. Maybe you are looking to strengthen your emotional connection with a partner, improve your communication or change your behaviours within the relationship. Maybe you are looking to move on from a previous relationship and have not been able to get over a break up or need to find the strength to end a relationship . You may be having difficulty building or maintaining friendships, or you may be experiencing a breakdown of an existing friendship. Therapy is a supportive place to discuss issues and solutions regarding your relationship needs in order to move forward , increase well-being, change behaviours or identify areas for change. I can help you improve your communication in your relationships and help you develop the skills for more satisfying relationships in the future. Relationship counselling is available on an individual basis or with a partner/friend/family member if needed.

Couples Counselling

Couples counselling is available for same sex and mixed sex couples. Couples therapy aims to help partners and couples to become more aware of the habits and fixed patterns that influence relating to one another and relating to others. Awareness brings choice, personal responsibility and resourcefulness. Counselling also provides you with an opportunity to present issues that are causing you concern, difficulty or distress to someone who is trained in providing counselling and relational help. Counselling can help you both learn to communicate together in a respectful way that helps you to both feel heard and understood. You can learn new ways to resolve conflict within the relationship, set goals for the future and create a real partnership where you both feel valued and appreciated. Couples counselling can help you see the blind spots you have within the relationship, understand how your behaviours affect your partner, heal old wounds and grow connections. There may be feelings of betrayal, unfulfillment or a lack of intimacy. You may be a new couple starting out and just want to make a plan to move forward with your new life together. One or both of you may be considering divorce or separation and counselling provides a safe and controlled environment to be able to work through how this can be achieved with the least distress and with mutual agreement.

Depression, Stress & Anxiety

Depression, fear and anxiety including catastrophic or over thinking are some of the most common and uncomfortable emotions that we can experience at some point in our lives. Through counselling, we are able to help you recover motivation, perspective and joy that you once had in your life. I can help you truly understand what anxiety is and work with you to understand the root causes. Together, we can work on a plan to overcome these debilitating feelings and help you to function better and lead a more satisfying and anxiety free life.

Grief

Loss comes to everyone at some point whether that be the loss of a person, a pet, a dream, a job or career . It may be a relationship you had or a future you had imagined or worked hard for. Anxiety, fear, despair, regret and hopelessness are a few emotions that can linger. Counselling can help you and we can work together to help you adjust and accept 'your new normal' and guide you through the process of grief and healing. This can include end of life care for yourself and/or a friend or relative.

Autistic Adults

If you are an autistic adult and would like to speak with a counsellor who has 13 years experience with autism, has both experience of counselling autistic adults and who has completed several autism training courses including working psychologically with autistic adults, please get in contact to discuss your needs further and how the sessions can be adapted to meet your needs.

Carers & SEND parents - Caring for the carers

Who cares for the cares? I do and this is where I can help you.

Being a carer means providing care and support to someone who needs more care over and beyond the normal relationship, who needs help because of their illness, frailty, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction and cannot cope without their support

Being a carer to a family member can, for some people, be draining both physically and mentally, and this 'dual' relationship can take its toll on one's emotional health. Oftentimes, people feel guilty discussing the added burden of caring for a loved one and counselling is a safe and confidential space to explore your feelings and emotions, I can help you to achieve more resilience, better emotional health and well-being and help you find your self identity again. One of the common themes I hear when working with clients who are carers, is that they feel they have lost their own identity, and need more time for themselves.

Being a parent to a child with special needs or a disability can exacerbate the emotional roller coaster many parents already experience . Whilst undertaking a research project (as part of my qualification in Therapeutic Counselling) I investigated the impact to the mental health of parents of children with all forms of special needs. I found that of the parents in the research group, 78% of parents reported high levels of anxiety, 65% reported feeling sad and fatigued and 56% reported feelings of social isolation, fear and of being overwhelmed. Maybe you recognise some of these symptoms yourself or you feel burnout, or have lost your self identity? If you are a parent of a child with special needs and would like to talk to a trained counsellor who is also a parent of a child with special needs, I can offer you the added understanding of some of the mixed feelings you may be experiencing.

Cancer Support or any illness or diagnosis

Receiving a diagnosis of cancer, or any other illness can be terrifying and emotionally and physically draining, turning your whole world upside down. The impact and fallout can reverberate throughout your whole family.

Receiving a life threatening diagnosis of any kind leads many people to re-evaluate their life, lifestyle and choices. You may want to make sense of what has happened, why and how the diagnosis affects your life. You may be feeling like your life has no purpose now or that you do not have the strength to go on. Friends and family can be very well meaning and are always trying to stay positive for you, but sometimes, you need to explore and talk about the harsh realities and it is not always easy to do this with your family. Counselling can help you do this in a calm and safe environment and help you come to terms with your 'new normal', build emotional resilience and mental well-being and help you to live life how you want to.

Through a registered Cancer charity, I have been working with and emotionally supporting clients who are still having treatment for cancer and also clients who no longer have cancer and are now starting to process the journey they have been on to overcome their diagnosis.

Family members and friends are also affected by a loved ones diagnosis and many people find they need the extra support to cope and come to terms with the diagnosis. I have been working with and supporting the families of those whose lives have been touched by Cancer.

If you or a loved one has an illness or diagnosis that is affecting your life in anyway and want to better understand how I can help you, please make contact through the message button and you can have a free consultation to find out more about how i can support you.