Mind-full or mindful? Argh or Ahh!

Mindfulness or the idea of being mindful, has been around for a long time but there are still a lot of misconceptions about it. A belief that it’s about emptying your mind or you need to be Buddhist or reach some special spiritual plain… First things first, you don’t need to be anyone special to… Continue reading Mind-full or mindful? Argh or Ahh!

What is person centred counselling?

Coming under the umbrella of humanistic counselling, person centred (PC) counselling was devised by psychologist, Carl Rogers. The idea behind PC theory is that the counsellor and the client work together to understand the client’s experience of themselves. In doing this, the self awareness and understanding this brings, the client is then able to change… Continue reading What is person centred counselling?

What is integrative counselling?

An integrative counsellor will work with their client to understand their needs and then combine different ideas from various therapeutic models. In merging different elements it means the counsellor works fleixbly depending upon each individual client. Integrative counselling is a relational approach, the client takes an active role in the direction of the therapy. True… Continue reading What is integrative counselling?

Empathy not sympathy: the vital essence of counselling

If I sympathise with you I would stand at a distance and say I feel sorry for you. This may help if I’m a friend or family member. It may be helpful for me to acknowledge that you’re going through a bad time but it has no impact on me. If I show empathy for… Continue reading Empathy not sympathy: the vital essence of counselling

How can counselling help neurodivergent adults?

You may have come across this post wondering if you’re autistic or ADHD. Is counselling the right course of action? Will a counsellor understand the way your brain works? It can be really hard when you’ve been feeling like an alien, feeling as though you don’t fit in, feeling as though no one understands… To… Continue reading How can counselling help neurodivergent adults?

How to choose a counsellor

So, you’ve made the brave step and decided counselling will be helpful but you’re now faced with an array of counsellors, all of whom look qualified and nice enough but how do you know who will be the right counsellor for you?! Sometimes you may simply get a gut feeling and that’s absolutely fine but… Continue reading How to choose a counsellor