Welcome to the start of your counselling journey
I’ve always wanted to be a therapist – I felt it was my calling. Always the sounding board for friends and family and calm in a crisis, it just seemed the perfect fit, but after 20 plus years working in marketing for various companies, it was always comfortable and safe to stay where I was, and not take the plunge. And then in July 2018, when I’d finished working for a health and wellbeing brand that embodied a culture of bullying and distrust, and was the worst period of my career. I started therapy to deal with the emotional fallout, to start the healing process and the next chapter of my journey.
Then followed a long period of unemployment, dozens of rejections at job interviews, long periods of self-doubt and plenty of time for reflection. I concluded the last foray I’d had in my marketing role had left such a nasty taste, and I’d really fallen out of love with the sector. I felt the time was right to embark on something new, so I applied for a post graduate place at The University of East London and have never looked back. The training and studying at UEL was intense throughout, but what a journey of self-discovery, and I met some wonderful people – all with their own ‘stuff’ and from the most different backgrounds, but all of us navigating a new way of study, due to the pandemic and closely connected through our shared experiences.
During my training, I suffered the loss of my father with whom I was incredibly close, but learning about grief whilst experiencing it was very sustaining in the most difficult of times, and it’s these sort of life experiences - bereavement, redundancy, trauma that can knock even the most grounded person for six. Being in a position to help people navigate their own challenges in this rollercoaster we call life is a privilege and honour. Times seem to be even tougher now, with the after effects of the pandemic, a cost of living crisis and looming recession, fears over global political strife and climate change, over and above our daily health, relationship and financial worries. There has never been a greater need for mental health services and slowly, slowly, the stigma of talking about mental health is reducing, but there’s still a way to go.
I have personally had therapy (as is required of all counsellors training) and it’s been illuminating. Sometimes the revelations I’ve had have happened during a therapy session, but often just bringing things to light have then allowed me for further exploration between sessions, and often that’s where the biggest shifts of awareness and growth have happened for me personally.
What can you expect from therapy with me?
Well firstly – a totally safe and non-judgemental place to talk about anything you want and to unburden yourself. Several of my clients have disclosed things they’ve held onto for years, and it’s a total privilege to be trusted enough to be their confidant, as they display such tremendous courage.
The time is yours – to bring whatever you want – I have no fixed agenda. I will ask what you want to get out of your therapy, with a view to setting an ultimate goal, but as you continue to explore on a deeper level, these goals can change, so nothing is fixed or set in stone, we will check in regularly to review how you think things are going and if you want to focus on something else.
The client/therapist relationship has often been likened to as a dance – and continuing this metaphor, we could start off with a waltz, covering a lot of the same material for a while, but then may evolve to a tango where we seem to be moving forwards in a specific direction. And then perhaps we may take a misstep and revert back to the waltz and so on and so forth…. I guess what I’m trying to convey is twofold; it’s not a linear process and I follow your lead.
Essentially therapy works on the premise that by exploring our past – the environment, relationships feelings, etc, it can help shed a light on how we relate in the present – to ourselves, to others, our view of the world. The first step towards healing is to make the unconscious conscious. It isn’t an easy process and it can take time so patience is needed but I can wholly testify from personal experience, it is definitely worth the effort – you are definitely worth the effort – the best investment you can make – in yourself!
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