What to expect.
The type of therapy I use depends on the preference and needs of the individuals and families I see.
For adults and older teens a first appointment allows us to discuss your concerns and work out the best way forward together.
For children and younger teens a first appointment is usually with their parents (without the child) so we can discuss the concerns of the adults, look at the context of these concerns and plan together the best way forward. This plan will usually involve a couple of appointments with the child or young person then a further appointment with their parents to provide my perspective and look at options for the way forward.
(Confidentiality and the right to privacy underpin all appointments. A discussion is had with all children and teens regarding their comfort with me sharing specific information with their parents. This is important as therapy needs to be a place where anyone feels safe to explore issues they find difficult to talk about. The balance of providing this opportunity alongside keeping parents informed underpins child focused therapy. Should issues of risk arise, however, these are addressed with parents after a conversation with the child or young person.)
I now offer appointments via zoom on Thursdays. This allows more people to be able to access my service, regardless of where you live. What I can offer online includes parenting support, help developing behavioural strategies, and problem solving support, as well as some individual therapy. I believe that we all need support from time to time and getting this quickly is more helpful than waiting for things to get really hard. I aim to provide a proactive and preventative service so that people don’t have to wait until problems are really difficult before they seek help. This can be one off appointments or appointments as needed on an ongoing basis.
How I offer psychotherapy and counselling - in person
Creativity underpins all the therapeutic approaches I use. This simply means accessing your own inner capacity to solve problems and explore new perspectives. It does not require any particular artistic ability.
Creativity is the product of imagination. While we are imagining we are free from the confines of reality. We are free to explore different ways of being, relating and coping without the restrictions or consequences of reality. Therapy is a creative process. It is an opportunity to take a step back from everyday reality and look at things afresh. It takes imagination. This imagination can take many forms.
Specific Therapies.
Play Therapy.
Play therapy is a form of child counselling and psychotherapy that allows children to use the world of “it’s just pretend” to face difficulties that would otherwise be too overwhelming for them. For example, a child who is struggling to come to terms with their parents separating may play out the various roles of the people involved and in the process develop more understanding of what is happening.
Sandplay Therapy.
Sandplay is a type of play based therapy that involves using figurines and other objects to create imaginative representations of the person’s experience. It is used with all ages as a way of expressing what is happening on the inside. It is a way of bypassing what we are consciously aware of and becoming more aware of our underlying hopes, dreams and fears.
It is very powerful and, for older people – teens and adults – will often provoke a sense of surprise as we recognise underlying concerns and needs, communicated via symbols, similar to how art speaks to us. Children are more likely to take it in their stride, being still more directly connected with imaginative forms of relating through play. Sometimes a person will know what they have expressed through the tray they have created while often they just feel a subtle sense of relief, of having relieved themselves of a burden. The impact of completing a sandtray continues to have an impact long after they have left the room as the process tends to kickstart internal changes.
Interactive Drawing Therapy.
This is a specific kind of drawing therapy developed in New Zealand. It aims to bring together images (imagination) and words (reflective understanding) to help a person develop greater self-understanding and provide emotional relief. In common with sandplay therapy, the aim is to help the person access their own healing ability through the use of metaphor and the imagination.
Talking Therapy.
I use a psychodynamic therapeutic approach with some of the strategies of cognitive behavioural therapy. What this means is that I work with people to look at recurring patterns in their lives and to understand how this impacts on their quality of life. Metaphors will often be useful as a way of deepening self-understanding. Practical strategies such as looking at specific thoughts and behaviours and working at changing these can also help to make active changes.
“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.”
-Edward de Bono