Frequently Asked Questions
Yes it does. As a consequence of the Covid Pandemic therapy moved online. We now have extensive research evidence that shows online therapy is as effective as face-to-face therapy.
Online therapy has also been shown to reduce barriers, which prevented some people from seeking help. People can now have access to a counsellor from the comfort of their home, or privacy of their car or office, without the perceived stigma of walking into a therapy practice. Some men, for example, struggle with the idea of going to see a counsellor, with only 30% of counselling clients being male. Online therapy is helping to reduce this barrier.
In popular culture counsellors are often, stereotypically, depicted asking intrusive questions like, “what was it like growing up in your family?” or “were you abused as a child?” As a person-centred counsellor, this is not how I work. We will only discuss what you bring to therapy. Which means, if you never talk about your family or childhood, we will not discuss them. You will decide the direction of travel, what we talk about, or do not talk about.
Clearly, clients bring a range of complicated and difficult issues to counselling. Should you wish to explore painful or distressing areas of your life, we will always work at your pace.
This question is a common one and rightfully so. Whatever you share with me, will stay with me.
Counselling is a confidential service. Individuals, who share sensitive information want to be sure that everything that is said remains private between themselves and their counsellor. This is the case, though there are a few exceptions to do with serious risk and safeguarding, but these will be explained to you before counselling begins.
There is no one-size-fits-all to the counselling process as it is dependent on the person and their needs. For some people a few sessions will suffice and for others, it may take many sessions.
I offer time-limited therapy (up to 15 weeks), medium-term therapy (3 to 6 months) and longer-term therapy (up to 3 years or more, in some cases). As a useful guide, the National Health Service usually offers between 6 and 12 sessions to their clients, focused on relieving the immediate symptoms or problems. Medium and longer term therapy (psychotherapy) is focused on addressing deep-seated, underlying issues and usually follows short-term therapy (counselling). Psychotherapy sessions are weekly, fortnightly or monthly and can vary according to need.
Yes, I work with couples and other relationship types such as; family dyads (e.g., mother and son), friendship dyads, employment dyads and polyamorous relationships. I welcome opposite sex and same sex couples, regardless of relationship status, whether that be married, civil partnered, living together, living apart, divorced, separated or dealing with the aftermath of an affair.
Often people come to couples or relationship counselling when they are in crisis or experiencing communication problems. I aim to guide and support you as we work through the process appropriate to your goals of either; repairing, rebuilding, or moving on from your relationship.

I do not believe you are broken and need to be fixed. However, I understand you may be going through difficulties in your life and experiencing discomfort, anxiety, depression, pain or other emotions that you are struggling to regulate or manage.
Counselling will help you to explore your thoughts and feelings in a safe and nurturing environment, to help you make sense of past hurtful events and help you find positive ways to deal with uncomfortable emotions or problematic behaviours.
Some men find it difficult to express their feelings or articulate what is really going on for them, for fear of being judged as weak, not good enough, or 'unmanly'. As a consequence of bottling-up emotions, men are three times more likely than women to take their life by suicide, or engage in harmful or risky behaviours.
Counselling can help men overcome distress, by exploring issues related to the pressure of conforming to expectations of traditional masculinity. Further, counselling can assist men to develop greater self-awareness, resulting in improved relationships and enhanced wellbeing.
I will contact you by email within two working days, to let you know which counselling slots I have available. If you are interested, you can book a time slot and I will send you a confirmation email with a Zoom link, which will give you access to your 40 minute free session.
I understand that there might be situations where you may not be able to attend a booked session. Please give as much notice as possible if you need to cancel or postpone, by text or email. Missed or cancelled sessions need to be paid in full if notice is received within less than two working days of the session.
If you would like to know more, or discuss whether counselling is right for you, please contact me. I can answer your questions via email or phone, or you can book a session with me, where you will be able to ask any questions you may have.