Naomi MBACP (Reg) , BA Hons
Availability: Monday mornings & afternoons
Mode: In person
Fees: Initial assessment session £40 (£30 for concessions), thereafter £50 per session (£40 for concesssions).
Qualifications
Foundation Degree Person-Centred Counselling & Psychotherapy
BA (Hons) Person-Centred Counselling & Psychotherapy
Experience
My background has been working in both the legal and charity sectors, having always wanted to work in a role that provides support to people through challenging times. This led me into counselling training and I qualified as a Person-Centred counsellor in 2019. As a Registered Member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy, I work to their professional standard and Ethical Framework. I have worked with adult clients ranging from 18 year olds to people in their early 80s and with clients presenting with issues including anxiety, depression, OCD, relationship and family issues, loss, bereavement and abuse. I have provided both short term counselling of between 4-6-sessions, as well as long-term, open-ended counselling.
What do I offer?
I offer one to one weekly counselling for adults face to face. Each session lasts 50 minutes. The work can be short term, typically over 6 session blocks, or longer term open-ended therapy with reviews built in to check that the counselling is still meeting your needs.
At an initial assessment session we will discuss what has brought you to counselling and what you would like to achieve through our work together. This not only allows me to assess whether my skills are suited to your needs, but importantly it is an opportunity for you to decide if you feel comfortable working with me because research consistently shows that the relationship between therapist and client is key to the counselling process. There is no obligation to commit to ongoing therapy after the initial meeting.
Approach
As a person-centred therapist I believe that each person is the best expert on their own thoughts and feelings, and I aim to empower you to bring this to the fore to support your growth in your own direction, at your own pace. Rather than offering expert opinion or advice, I will sit alongside you in a non-judgemental and empathic environment where we can work together to explore and understand what is going on for you. Working in this way can help you to take what you have experienced in the counselling room into your day to day life.
Understanding what is going on in our relationship as counsellor and client can sometimes prove a useful tool for understanding what you experience in other relationships and issues. As our work together continues we may find it helpful to notice and reflect on how we relate in the counselling room and whether this can offer a useful perspective of what may be going on for you outside of the counselling room.
I sometimes like to use creative tools to help clients express themselves when words can be difficult to find. This might mean working with art materials, music or objects and exploring what meanings or metaphors might come up for you as a result.
I have a particular interest in person-centred creative and expressive arts therapy which can help clients explore how physical, mental and emotional responses may connect to bring meaning to their experiences. This work can be very powerful and if clients are interested in this area it is something we may explore once we have been working together for a while.