What is psychotherapy and counselling?

Engaging in psychotherapy and counselling affords you the time and space to explore and reflect on issues that are causing you emotional and psychological difficulty.

You may find that you avoid certain situations, that you have lost confidence, motivation, or fear the worst. You may have low self-esteem or have fears about the way you come across to people in your life. These thoughts and feelings are just some of the many we experience in daily life and are part of what make us human.

Psychodynamic therapy is based on the principle that our past experiences, behaviours and relationships may have influenced and shaped our current patterns of behaviour and emotional thinking. Sometimes we don’t understand how our beliefs and fears have shaped our way of looking at and how we live in the world, as they have become ingrained and automatic.

The self-awareness gained through therapy can lead to positive and long-lasting change by giving you more choice over your actions and decisions. In doing so, it can improve your health, wellbeing and relationships, ease emotional discomfort and enable you to cope better with the challenges that life may bring in the future, making life more satisfying and manageable.

For psychotherapy to be successful, therefore, respect for confidentiality and privacy is essential.

Learn more about psychotherapy online here or download the helpful booklet Making sense of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis here. 

For details of the practicalities of how I work, please read my page ‘How it works’.