First Steps
Finding a therapist you feel comfortable with is essential for a trusting, therapeutic relationship to develop. The first step is to arrange an initial consultation. This first meeting (1hr 15mins for couples, 1hr for individuals) is an opportunity to tell me what issues and concerns bring you to therapy, what you hope to achieve, and a little bit about yourselves. You can get a feel for how I work and reflect on whether the support I offer feels helpful for you. If we need more time, I may suggest we meet a second time.
Together we can decide whether to commit to on-going weekly therapy.
On-going therapy
Sessions are 50 minutes and we will meet at the same time and day each week, outside of my breaks. This regular commitment provides a rhythm and sense of security for the work we do together. If you cannot attend, I will endeavour, where possible, to offer you an alternative session time however this cannot be guaranteed. Cancelled or missed sessions are charged for.
I will let you lead the sessions, bringing whatever is on your mind. I will offer comments, observations and questions to support you in making sense of your thoughts, feelings and behaviours. We may think about how your past experiences have shaped your beliefs and expectations of relationships, and how these are influencing what is happening in the here and now.
Endings
All individuals, couples and therapies are unique so it's not possible to predict how long your therapy will take. I find an open-ended, client-led approach is most helpful, allowing you to work at your own pace and take as much time as you need to work through your difficulties. We will keep your initial goals in mind and review the work regularly to think about what is, or isn't, changing.
When you feel ready to leave I usually suggest we work towards an ending over a number of sessions so we can review what has happened in the therapy, consider your thoughts about the future, and bring our therapeutic relationship to a thoughtful close.