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Frequently Asked Questions
Counselling, CBT and EMDR cost £85 per one-hour session and I offer a free 15 minute initial phone consultation.I charge a fixed fee of £85 per hour for all therapies. This enables us to work with whatever intervention is most appropriate in the moment, without having to stop mid-session and discuss fees.In my experience, working with a combination of different approaches produces the best results as it enables you to utilise the full capacity of your mind by exploring emotions and developing solutions that you may not have considered before.I am not a trained relationship counsellor so I am unable to provide couples or relationship counselling.I offer a small number of concessionary places to counselling students where this is a requirement of your course.If a session is cancelled 24 hours in advance, there will be no charge; for sessions cancelled without this notice, the full fee will still apply. For face-to-face sessions, I accept payment by Bank Transfer and Paypal before the session or Cash and Credit/Debit Card after the session.
It varies from person to person and will depend upon the issues we're discussing. It can often be helpful for us to meet weekly in the beginning to enable change to happen quickly, moving to less frequently as the work progresses. I offer short- and long-term counselling and am always led by my client's needs, with regular reviews to ensure that you're getting what you need from our sessions.
I work with adults over 18 years of age.
I take your confidentiality very seriously, and we will discuss this in our first session.
Travelling from Plymouth city centre, past Drake Circus (B3250) and onto Mutley Plain, take the first left into Ermington Terrace (just past Mutley Baptist Church). You can park for 2 hours free in the car park directly in front of you (Napier Terrace car park), or park outside the house for free before 12pm and after 3pm.If parking in the free car park, you will need to get a ticket. Enter your car registration and press the green button. You will need to wait up to 45 seconds (it may take this long!) and it will ask you to press the green button again. The car park is ticketless; you don't need to display one on your car.I am on the left as you exit the car park, in the house next to the Raffles Social Club.Press bell number 2I don't have a waiting area, so I would be really grateful if you could arrive as close to your appointment time as possible, or I may be with another client.If you are using public transport, several buses stop on Mutley Plain from all directions every hour, and I'm less than half a mile from Plymouth Train Station.
Opening hours
Mon: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Tue: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Wed: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Thu: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Fri: Closed
Sat: Closed
Sun: Closed
Counselling FAQ
Be patient with yourself. The result is personal growth and self-awareness, leading to a more satisfying and meaningful life.Try to go into counselling with realistic expectations. It's not a quick-fix solution; it's a process. It also means making sometimes difficult changes in your behaviour or thinking patterns.Try to be honest and open with me, not only about the issues you're bringing up and how you feel, but also about whether the sessions are working for you.
Spend time between sessions reflecting on what we've discussed. Doing this daily will help you feel more comfortable talking about your feelings. Spend some time thinking about how to describe your feelings. Doing this can help you focus on particular issues during the session.It's important to be yourself and use language that feels comfortable for you. This includes swearing if that helps you express how you're feeling and get your point across.For many people, crying and getting upset are natural and frequent parts of the counselling process. Please try not to worry or feel embarrassed that this may happen; you will be given the time and space you need until you feel ready to continue.
Counselling may help if you’re feeling anxious, low, overwhelmed, or unlike yourself, especially if these feelings persist or affect your everyday life. You might notice changes in your sleep or appetite, difficulty concentrating, irritability, or withdrawing from people and activities you usually enjoy.You may also benefit from support if you’re struggling with bereavement, relationship difficulties, a major life change or painful past experiences. If you feel stuck in repeated patterns, or your usual coping methods no longer help, reach out.You don’t need a diagnosis or to reach a crisis point. Wanting a space to talk, understand your feelings, and explore ways forward is reason enough to consider counselling.
Consider counselling whenever something affects your wellbeing or feels difficult to manage alone. This might be during a stressful period, after a loss or relationship breakdown, or when worries and low mood begin affecting your work, relationships or daily life.You don’t have to wait until things feel unbearable. Counselling can also be helpful when you’re facing a decision, adjusting to change, or wanting to understand yourself and your relationships better.There’s no set threshold you need to meet, and your difficulties don’t have to feel as serious as someone else’s. If something matters to you, it’s worth talking about. An initial conversation with a counsellor can help you explore whether their support feels right for you.
No single form of counselling works best for everyone. The best approach depends on what you’re experiencing, what you hope to achieve and your preferences. Some therapies have stronger evidence for particular difficulties.For example, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an established treatment for many anxiety problems and depression. Counselling can help you explore difficult emotions, experiences and relationships, and is also a treatment option for depression.Feeling heard and comfortable with your therapist matters too. A qualified practitioner can discuss your needs, explain suitable approaches and help you make an informed choice. You don’t have to choose alone, and you can review progress together if the approach isn’t helping as you had hoped.
Weekly sessions are common, especially when you first start therapy, but no schedule suits everyone. How often you attend depends on your needs, the type of therapy, and what you and your therapist agree on.Some people attend fortnightly, while others may need more frequent support. Regular appointments provide space to explore what’s happening and reflect on what you’re learning between sessions.Your therapist should discuss the recommended frequency with you, taking your circumstances, availability and budget into account. You can review this together as therapy progresses and your needs change.If the gaps between appointments feel too long, or you’re considering meeting less often, talk it through with your therapist so you can agree a suitable plan.
Counselling gives you space to talk openly with a trained professional who listens without judging. Your counsellor helps you explore your thoughts, feelings and experiences, so you can better understand yourself and what may be contributing to your difficulties.Through these conversations, you may recognise recurring patterns, see situations from a different perspective and find ways to cope with difficult emotions. Depending on your needs, you might work on relationships, boundaries, confidence or adjusting to change.A counsellor won’t usually tell you what to do or make decisions for you. Instead, they support you in finding your own way forward. Progress can take time, and what you gain from counselling will depend on your individual circumstances.
Counselling usually takes place through regular conversations with a trained counsellor, either face to face, online or over the phone. Sessions often last around 50 minutes, although arrangements vary.At your first appointment, you’ll have an opportunity to explain what has brought you to counselling and what you’d like help with. Your counsellor will explain how they work, practical arrangements and confidentiality, including its limits.During sessions, you can talk about your feelings, experiences and concerns at a pace that feels manageable. Your counsellor listens, asks questions and helps you explore what’s happening. Some approaches may include practical exercises or activities between appointments.You’ll agree together how often to meet and review whether the sessions are helping you move towards your goals.
An Integrative Approach
Person-Centred Counselling is based on the belief that everyone tries to fulfil their own potential and has the capacity to do so. It emphasises the quality of the relationship between you and the counsellor, which is considered the most important thing to help you. Person-Centred Counselling does not involve being given advice or being told what to do. My role is to help you to learn to trust yourself and realise your potential, talk about the things that are holding you back and determine the right way forward for yourself. Counsellors offer you an understanding approach that is honest, friendly, and non-judgmental. You decide the main focus of the counselling and discuss what might help. My role helps the process by asking questions and helping you clarify what you think and how you feel.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a type of psychotherapy developed in the late 1980s by Dr Francine Shapiro for working with distressing or traumatic memories. The theory behind EMDR is that many psychological problems result from distressing life experiences that have not been stored correctly in your memory. These traumatic memories may need help to be processed, with EMDR being one way to do this.
CBT therapy is a talking therapy with a therapist, but there is a specific structure, and there is usually a set number of sessions. CBT works by helping people identify, break, and change unhelpful thought patterns. It's usually split into five areas:SituationsThoughtsEmotions Physical feelings ActionsCBT views these areas as interconnected, so they impact each other. The therapy is based on the premise that thought patterns often contribute to mental health difficulties, emotions, and destructive behaviour. For example, your thoughts about a particular situation will impact how you feel physically and emotionally and how you react. The therapist guides you through the different CBT stages during therapy:Identifying and becoming aware of negative thoughtsPractising new coping skills and reshaping thought patterns Goal settingProblem-solving Self-monitoring and reflectionIdentifying and changing thought patterns can be challenging. Many people have had the same thought patterns for years. CBT has a structure to help you find different ways to break habits and find new healthy coping techniques.
Gestalt therapy is an approach to counselling that helps you focus on the present and understand what is happening in your life. Instead of what you may perceive to be happening based on past experience. With Gestalt Therapy, instead of simply talking about past situations, you're encouraged to experience them. This can involve focusing on the event and bringing past feelings to the here and now, so they can be fully explored and made sense of. Through the gestalt process, you learn to become more aware of how your negative thought patterns and behaviours block accurate self-awareness and make you unhappy. The word "gestalt" means whole. Psychotherapist Fritz Perls developed gestalt therapy on the principle that humans are best viewed as a whole entity consisting of body, mind, and soul and are best understood when viewed through your own eyes. Not by looking back into the past, but by bringing the past into the present.
Mindfulness therapy is based on the ancient practice of mindfulness and is a very popular approach that can be helpful if you're stressed, anxious, or suffering from mood-related issues. Mindfulness Therapy can also be very helpful in helping you focus your mind on the immediate present. This process, with practice, allows you to recognise the mind's wanderings as thoughts, not reality. For example, you may start thinking: “What if I can’t cope?”, “That person doesn’t like me”, “I’m no good at that”, etc. These thoughts will lead to negative feelings such as anger, sadness, guilt, anxiety, or regret. But if you let these feelings pass through your mind freely, you can learn to accept them as only day-to-day thoughts and nothing more. You can then free yourself from the negative emotions that accompany them and learn to feel more peaceful and calm every day. Indeed, research suggests that patterns of the mind actually change with the practice of mindfulness.
If you'd like to find out more, please get in touch with me below or call me on 07985 098825.
I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation with no obligation.
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