What can I expect from therapy?
Counselling and psychotherapy provides a safe, supportive and non-judgemental space where you can take time to talk about difficulties you are experiencing. You may come with specific goals in mind as an outcome of your therapy journey, to work through a relationship difficulty, or a period of stress in your life. Or you may want to give voice to concerns, anxieties, or unhappiness stemming from experiences or relationships from earlier in your life. However, many people also come to therapy because they are struggling and feeling down without quite knowing why and simply want to take some time to explore why they are not happy.
Whatever your reason for seeking therapy, the therapeutic process will support you to gain a deeper understanding of your thoughts and feelings, to reflect with self-compassion on events and relationships which may have had significant impact or long-term consequences for your well-being. Being in therapy will support you to develop awareness of options and strategies for managing your problems, and it will help unlock recurring patterns and difficult feelings. We also work together with your strengths and resources to help you achieve your goals.
What does being in therapy involve?
In our first therapy session I will invite you to say something about the issues that you are struggling with, and about what you want from the therapy process, including any specific goals, so we can plan how to move forward. It’s important to feel some rapport for a therapist because this will influence whether the work is successful or not. You can see how you experience working with me in this first meeting and decide whether or not you would like to continue for a further period.
Counselling and psychotherapy is usually thought to work best when sessions are held regularly, such as on a weekly basis. These would be at the same time and on the same day each week. If you decide to continue, depending on what issues you want to explore, or what your goals are, we might decide to work together for a time-limited period of for example, 8-12 weeks. Or you may want to commit to a longer, more open-ended period of therapy with me, for 6-12 months, or longer. There are no rights and wrongs regarding time-scales for being in therapy. We will always discuss together what you want to do regarding your therapy.