My Approach
My aim as a counsellor is to provide you with a safe and confidential place where you can:
- talk freely without fear of being judged or criticised;
- get a clearer, more balanced view of what is troubling you;
- begin bringing some necessary change to your life.
I will view you as a normal, healthy individual who is experiencing some particular difficulty that can be helped by being able to talk freely about it. I won’t diagnose or analyse you, or view you as if medically ill. However I recognise that some medical conditions can cause people to feel particularly depressed or unduly anxious and I may suggest that you get checked out by your medical advisor.
No two people are ever the same and so I’ll tailor my approach around your individual needs and circumstances. You might just want a couple of sessions, or you might be looking for something longer term. However as a rule of thumb I would not expect your sessions to exceed 20. There are important exceptions though, for example with counsellors in training or where the issues involved are particularly deep seated and damaging.
I’d normally work face to face with you and we might typically meet on a weekly basis for an hour, although this can be varied. As you approached the end of counselling, the gap between our sessions might increase. Telephone sessions can also be arranged.
We would regularly review our work together, allowing you to consolidate what you have learned and confirm that it is giving you what you seek and you are always free to end our work at any point of your choosing.
I work from my home in Exeter, which is on a bus route with easy, unrestricted parking.