Ways We Can Work

Below is a description of different ways of exploring mental health issues using counselling and psychotherapy. Don’t worry if you don’t know what kind of therapy you want yet, especially if we haven’t met yet for an initial assessment. You don’t even need to read the information below if you don’t want to, as we will discuss your options in the early sessions of therapy. I may also be able to point out some approaches that might be useful for your particular problem or goal. So, if you wish to simply have an initial assessment with me, please see my contact page.

That being said, you might find it helpful to read the information below, and you might find you have an idea of which approach would best suit you. If this is the case, you can let me know and we can aim to use this psychotherapy approach. 

There are two broad ways of doing counselling and psychotherapy, counselling and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). On this page we will first look at different forms of counselling.

Counselling

Counselling is a way for you to talk things through in a non-judgemental space. It is an opportunity for you to simply express and explore your feelings without the fear of judgement. There are different ways I can help you do this. Of course, you might wish to explore using more than one of the approaches below, and that would be perfectly fine.

Humanistic Counselling: A form of counselling that draws on a mixture of counselling approaches, including many of the approaches below. Different models and techniques in counselling and psychotherapy are used at different times, depending on the types of things we discuss. This could be the type of psychotherapy for you if you are unsure about what approach would be best. Then, as we continue using this form of counselling, you might some specific style or technqiue that you like and we could then agree to do that more.

Motivational Counselling: Motivational counselling is particularly useful for people struggling with addictions, procrastination, or indecision, and involves helping people build up motivation to change.

Solution-Focused Therapy: This approach is designed to help you explore what you want to achieve, how you want to achieve it, and then making the changes you want to make. Here, we look at the solution, not the problem, and progress from there. 

Person-Centred Therapy: A classic counselling approach. No techniques, no tools, no goals – just listening.  The person-centred approach is particularly useful if you simply need to talk things through and express your feelings. This approach can also be useful when experiencing grief or loss, or if exploring relationship issues. 

Psycho-dynamic Counselling: Another classic counselling approach focusing on how the past can influence the present. Emphasis is placed on family, past experiences and relationships, and how these impact on you today. The aim here is to increase awareness so that change becomes possible.

Dream Therapy: For people who want to explore the meaning of their dreams, this is a way for you to open up the power of your mind and gain a deeper insight into your unconscious. This approach includes methods on how to capture and record your dreams. Click here to find out more.

Existential Counselling: This approach focuses on some of the fundamental elements of life, such as death, or the meaning/meaninglessness of life, and how to resolve conflicts that arise out of these fundamental concerns. This can involve finding personal answers to such questions as ‘what’s the point in living if, in the end, we die?’ This approach can also be used for people experiencing death anxiety. 

Spiritual Counselling: This might be a useful approach for people experiencing general life dissatisfaction or spiritual frustration, including a sense of meaninglessness or lack of joy. Here, we can draw upon different spiritual teachings and practises across the world to aid in finding meaning in life, and peace of mind. Meditation, compassion, and philosophical ideas about desire, peace, suffering and contentment could be explored here. 

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT): Within a CBT-based approach there are two broad ways of approach therapy, using a low-intensity approach and a high-intensity approach.  See the CBT Section for more.