Counselling & Psychotherapy?
I am often asked what the difference is between Counselling and Psychotherapy, my simple reply is that in my opinion there is no great difference. Both have the aim of relieving psychological distress, both promote a greater understanding of the self and both rest on the foundations of a strong therapeutic relationship. Perhaps Counselling can be seen as short-term, more solution focused and Psychotherapy longer term work at a deeper more exploratory level but in my experience, it is often possible for shorter term work to be equally illuminating; sometimes it only takes a slight change of perspective to transform your whole vista.
My Approach:
My therapeutic style is collaborative, creative and dynamic. I see my approach as truly integrative, not only integrating different theoretical approaches but integrating myself into the therapeutic relationship so that I am able to offer whatever is required in the moment. If anxiety levels are so high or low mood is so extreme that it acts as a barrier to being able to engage in counselling, I might offer some CBT type interventions in the first few sessions in order to help find strategies to manage these intense feelings so that engagement is possible on a deeper more relational level going forward. A strong therapeutic relationship forms the basis of any other interventions, these might involve recognising patterns developed in order to avoid distress or defence mechanisms created in order to cope that are no longer useful and keep us stuck. My aim is to help you to un-stick, to learn to tolerate distress in new more adaptive ways and to find an internal strength that will last well beyond the end of therapy.