Peeling back the layers to a lighter life.
How can I help you?
Whether we meet face-to-face or online, my focus is always on creating a space where you feel safe enough to truly open up. You might be facing something specific, or just feeling stuck, even overwhelmed…I’ll meet you where you are, without judgement or pressure.
I work in a non-directive way, which means I follow your lead. When the time is right, I’ll help you gently explore unconscious patterns, emotions, or past experiences that may be influencing your present.
Together, we can make sense of what’s going on and step by step look at ways to unblock old wounds and negative thinking.
My Specialisms
Anxiety
Anxiety often sneaks into our lives unnoticed, leaving us feeling disconnected from ourselves. It becomes problematic when it starts affecting our daily functioning. Even if you understand the root causes of your anxiety, managing its symptoms can be challenging.
Here are some common physical and emotional responses triggered by anxiety:
Physical Symptoms:
Irregular breathing
Upset stomach
Excessive sweating
Racing heart
Nervousness or restlessness
Negative thinking or catastrophising
Avoiding social situations
Sleep disturbances
Emotional Responses:
Lack of self-belief
Uncertainty
Indecision
Overwhelm and feeling out of control
Difficulty silencing negative thoughts
Agitation
Stress
We often underestimate how much stress can impact our physical and emotional well-being.
“We often feel overwhelmed by external pressures, but that’s okay—it happens to everyone. When we get caught up in our thoughts, negativity can take over and make us anxious. Taking a moment to pause and breathe can help us reset.”
When the fight-or-flight response is triggered, it becomes challenging to stay in control of our emotions. For example, feelings of not being good enough can lead to shame — an emotion that can be difficult to face and manage.
Depression
We all have moments where we feel low but try to ‘power on’ in our own way. However, when negative thoughts and feelings repeatedly interfere with daily life, it may be a sign of depression.
Behaviours linked to depression include:
Lack of energy
Sleep problems
Early wakening
Negativity
Low motivation
Loss of appetite
Social withdrawal
Poor concentration
Left untreated, ongoing depressive thoughts can lead us into a cycle of negative thinking:
Low self-esteem
Lack of self- belief
Suicidal feelings
Although talking may be the last thing you want to do, reaching out to someone you trust can really help.
Opening up to someone can be such a relief. Trying to handle everything on your own can keep you stuck in the same painful patterns and make it harder to fully enjoy your life.
Grief and Loss
Loss enters our lives in a range of different ways. Sometimes unexpectedly and sometimes we are prepared, but it does not make the difficult emotions any easier.
Whilst we connect loss with losing a loved one through death, loss means different things to different people. It can be the result of:
A relationship break-up
The loss of a loved one from our lives
Loss of a job
Endings
In my work I meet with people who, for lots of reasons have not been able to connect with their loss or grief. This then forms an important part of our work in the Counselling room. For example, some people have not learned how to be vulnerable, and this gives us an opportunity to understand their past and to help them in the present.
Trauma
Trauma is a psychological response to an event perceived by our nervous system as life-threatening to oneself or others. Trauma affects our ability to process thoughts and make sound judgements.
In reaction to the trauma, you are likely to experience a whole host of emotions:
Fear and anxiety
Anger
Sadness and grief for the loss of a life that might have been
Numbness as a protective element to for the body and mind
Shame as a result of the dysfunctional environment to which you experienced
Dissociated feelings
By engaging with counselling, you will experience a warm environment where you at last feel safe. Over time you may want to revisit aspects of your trauma that continue to trouble you today.
Take the next step…
By engaging in counselling, you are taking a positive step in addressing the impact of your feelings. Together, we can explore how you arrived at this challenging place. Our goal is to help you discover healthier ways of connecting with your emotional needs.
What Is My Approach?
