While you are thinking whether to book that first, short call with me to find out more if counselling could be for you, here are some of my ways of working with different issues:
I listen how you experience anxiety and panic attacks and how they feel for you. I explain what anxiety and panic attacks are about, how to recognize your triggers and learn to understand your bodily reactions (hands shaking, heart racing, sweating, tenseness etc.).
I talk about how avoiding situations, people and place gives instant relief, but can keep anxiety going as anxiety creates anxiety. Together we work to find a way how your anxiety and panic attacks becomes more manageable and less scary. Because they do not have to take over your day-to day life.
I support you, at your pace and time, to tell me what your low mood, depression feels like. We explore what has happened and what might not have happened in your life, to build an understanding why you could be feeling the way you do.
Anxiety but also other life events and experiences such as bullying, relationship issues, work related issues can lead to low self-esteem, feeling sad, lack of self-confidence, and feelings of being not good enough.
I am there to help you to work with your self-worth, self-esteem and self-confidence. I will explain about self-compassion and how challenging it can be to be kind to ourselves. It can be perfectionism and high expectations we put on ourselves.
High expectations, inner critical voice and negative thoughts about self and where they could be originating from, is focus here. You might already know where they are coming from, but with my support you learn to manage them better. You can start feeling more positive about yourself which further builds up your self-esteem.
The way we feel about ourselves can have an effect on our relationships, equally our relationships can make us feel miserable, anxious and overwhelmed.
Relationships, mother/ daughter and couples counselling is something I have keen interest on, and I work not only with couples but individuals too who want to understand better what is happening in their relationships, who might want to understand why they are feeling insecure or avoidant in a relationship or who might need support in a breakup.
All very important reasons to have someone neutral, non-judgmental to hear you and offer you a place to find different perspectives and way forward at your own pace.
It’s not only romantic relationships which need attention. Mother/daughter, parents, in laws, sibling and even friends can make you feel unhappy and unsettled. I support you find out why and how to move forward. You learn to understand your own behavior, to be more present and comfortable with different relationships. This includes having clear, healthy boundaries, but also to learn why it can be difficult to leave the relationship.
It can even be your relationship with your manager or colleagues at work which is troubling you.
I can be there with you to understand what work stress is doing to you and find coping mechanisms in case you can’t leave the job. I can support in dealing with current or past workplace or even school age bullying and how it has made you feel.
I offer work / career coaching when you are ready to think about changing your job.
Based on my own experiences in business environment, I am passionate to offer stress and burnout management as part of counselling. Stress is not necessarily only about work but can relate to your personal life or to be a combination of both. Lack of time is commonly discussed. Clients who have suffered stress related symptoms have found that talking about their situation openly has helped to find clarity and some practical coping tools.
A successful career does not have to be a stressful career too.
Men and therapy/counselling I feel that it is important to normalize therapy for men too. Men are expected to cope with it all and asking for help can feel shameful. My own background in traditionally male orientated industry, together with additional counselling training for counselling men, helps me to offer counselling which my male clients have found approachable. Ultimately there is no difference in how counselling works for both men and women. It can be that couple sessions can be enough to support you to talk about any troubling issues better with your partner, family and friends.
Trauma and traumatic experiences can be something you have kept as a "secret" for too long or they are still affecting your life one way or another. Counselling can support you to talk about your experiences without judgement and confidentiality.
We are all unique in how we grief, and grief is not something which you need to get over with. Counselling gives a space to talk about your bereavement and loss at your own time with someone who does not judge. Bereavement and loss can be about a loved one, a pet, divorce, friendship, a job or anything else in your life.
Loss can be related to your health as well including menopause. It can be really hard coping with a chronic illness, e.g., chronic fatigue. Counselling enables you to share your
experiences, how challenging it is to cope with constant pain and how maybe your daily life, hopes and dreams have had to change. It can help you to discuss with your loved ones how you might feel like a "burden" or need to show "brave face" even when it does not like it.
Counselling may not take all your issues away, but it can give you ways of coping with them a lot better. It can allow you to move forward again with your life.
