Therapy can be beneficial in helping people to understand or navigate difficult or challenging times in their lives.

Counselling is different for everyone and so are the results.

Some potential changes that can occur are:
- Increased self-esteem and self-acceptance
- Increased resilience
- Able to trust oneself more
- Having processed trauma, experience triggers less often
- Better understanding of thoughts, motivations and behaviours
- Being able to come out to loved ones as LGBTQ+ and navigate their responses
- Gaining hope for the future after a bereavement or loss
- Learn new coping skills
- Feel empowered to make positive change

This is by no means an exhaustive list and change is never guaranteed.

Counselling or therapy is a two-way conversation that can include silences. Typically:

• the client usually speaks more than the counsellor

• You can work through what is going on for you nowadays or issues from your past

• I will not judge you and aim to build trust and a rapport where you feel safe to share or work through things that may be emotional or difficult

• there are some agreed aims (set by you) of what you would like to get out of coming to therapy

• It is a space where you can just be

All questions are valid and if you would like to know more about how I work you can read about my counselling approach or contact me.

Yes!

I use the words therapy and counselling to mean the same thing across this website and when I speak to people.

You can decide whether we have a phone conversation or video call, it will then be arranged for a mutually convenient date and time.

During the call I will usually ask more about why you are seeking therapy to understand how I can best support you at this time.

I will also ask how you would like to work. It’s okay if you don’t know at this time but if you are drawn to working with movement or would like drawing to feature in your therapy, this can be discussed. It’s okay to change your mind too, if you decide on one thing in our call and then want a slightly different approach when we have our first session.

We will decide if we were to meet whether this would be in person or online. If you know when you would like to meet or definitely cannot do, this information can be shared with me.

If you would like to proceed with working together, I will offer available dates and times for you to choose from and set up our first counselling session.

You don’t have to make an on the spot decision whether to proceed with me as your counsellor or not; just let me know you will take some time to consider your options.

I would appreciate a response even if the answer is ‘no’.

You can confirm you would like to start having counselling with me by phone, text or email.

I will then offer you a choice of dates and times for our first session.

Once we have decided when and where to meet (online or in Exeter), you will be given an address or online meeting link via email.

In person and online sessions are similar in the format they take.

If we meet in person, you will wait in the waiting area until I call your name. I will then introduce myself and lead you to the therapy room.

If we meet online, there will be a virtual waiting room. I will let you in to the room at the allocated session start time. You will have information about what to do if there are internet connection issues in advance.

Once we are in the room, I will ask you to complete a personal information form if you have not already done so and then go through my counselling agreement. There will also be opportunity for you to ask any questions you may have about me and my therapeutic approach.

The rest of the session will be yours to use as you wish; usually this is the start of getting to know you and what brings you to counselling at this time.

Therapists, myself included, are trained to meet you without judgement, regardless of your current, life experiences, circumstances or personal background.

As a trained professional who does not know you in other contexts, this can make sharing what’s going on for you easier.

We can talk about fear of judgement of others and work through this together, if you would like to.

No. Therapy can be beneficial to people in a variety of circumstances and at different points in their lives to help them better understand themselves, or make sense of thoughts feelings and behaviours.

However, if you are experiencing depression, this is something I can work with you around. I work with a range of topics and people, including gender identity, self-esteem, grief and loss and body image.

I am happy to address you by the name and pronouns of your choice, which do not need to match legal records.

However, if you have a dead name and different pronouns and this is on GP records or what your emergency contact knows you as, please make me aware of this so I do not accidentally out you, should I need to contact a third party.

When making contact with me, please specify if you have a preferred method of contact.

Make it clear if you do not want me to leave a voicemail or text, for example, and I will respect this throughout our work together unless you let me know otherwise.