Integrative Counselling
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You were born to be real, not perfect...
Counselling and psychotherapy are forms of talking therapy that involve working with a trained professional to explore your thoughts, feelings and behaviours in a confidential and supportive environment. Both counselling and psychotherapy provide a safe space to talk through feelings, experiences and behaviours that may be distressing or troubling, helping you make sense of both current and past experiences.
Working with a counsellor or psychotherapist can help you better understand the difficulties you are experiencing and develop healthy, effective coping strategies. Therapy can help you explore patterns in your thoughts, emotions, relationships and behaviours, allowing you to work towards positive changes and find new approaches to problems that may have affected you for some time.
Both counselling and psychotherapy involve a collaborative relationship between the therapist and client and can support people experiencing a wide range of emotional, psychological and behavioural difficulties. Our psychotherapists and counsellors listen, ask questions and provide professional guidance and support to help you explore and understand your thoughts, feelings and behaviours.
Our integrative approach to psychotherapy combines elements from different therapeutic models and techniques to create an approach tailored to your individual needs and goals. This allows your therapist to respond to your unique circumstances and adapt your therapy as you progress, whilst maintaining a coherent and effective therapeutic approach.
Our range of therapeutic approaches includes CBT, Parts Therapy, Hypnotherapy (clinical and cognitive), Emotionally Focused Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Gestalt, Psychodynamic Therapy, Mindfulness, REBT, EMDR and IEMT.
We provide psychotherapy across Berkshire and Oxfordshire, with sessions available face to face or through our online counselling service. Online counselling and psychotherapy provide flexible access to professional therapeutic support from the comfort of your own home, enabling us to support clients across the UK.
Psychotherapy and counselling are similar, yet different
Both psychotherapy and counselling are forms of talking therapy that involve working with a trained professional to explore your thoughts, feelings and behaviours in a confidential and supportive environment. While counselling is often shorter term and focused on present-day challenges, psychotherapy may involve longer-term work that explores past experiences, emotional patterns and underlying issues that may be influencing how you think, feel or behave today.
Working with a psychotherapist can give you the opportunity to explore these experiences in greater depth, understand recurring patterns and develop greater awareness of yourself and your relationships. The most appropriate approach will depend on your individual circumstances, goals and the difficulties you would like support with.
In counselling and psychotherapy you will be encouraged to:
- Talk about and clarify your problems and challenges
- Consider the consequences of various options
- Look towards the future changes and differences you wish to explore
- Acknowledge the impact of life events on your own well-being
- Help you deal with the challenges that life brings and you may be facing
What issues can counselling and psychotherapy help with?
Counselling can be helpful in a wide variety of situations such as:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Conflict at work
- Bereavement
- Depression
- Panic
- Low mood
- Health problems
- Relationships
- Lack of self-esteem
- Making decisions
- Coping in a crisis
- Feelings of inner conflict
- Loss of confidence & motivation
Frequently asked counselling questions:
The terms “counselling” and “therapy” are often used interchangeably, but they can have slightly different connotations.
counselling generally refers to the process of working with a trained professional to address specific issues or concerns, such as relationship problems, stress, or career challenges. It can be short-term and goal-oriented.
Therapy, on the other hand, can refer to a broader range of mental health treatments that may be longer-term and focus on underlying emotional or psychological issues. Therapy may include different approaches such as cognitive behavioural therapy, psychoanalytic therapy, etc.
However, in practice, the distinction between counselling and therapy can be subtle and many professionals use both terms interchangeably. Both counselling and therapy involve working with a trained professional to address emotional, mental, and behavioural issues, and both can be effective in helping people improve their mental health and overall well-being.
In summary, while counselling and therapy can have slightly different connotations, they both involve working with a trained professional to address emotional and mental health concerns. They both have the same goal of helping the person to improve their well-being.
Counselling sessions are typically focused on helping the individual understand and cope with their problems, emotions, and behaviours. During a counselling session, the individual can expect to:
- Talk about their concerns, thoughts, and feelings in a safe and confidential environment.
- Work with the counsellor to identify specific goals and objectives.
- Learn new coping strategies and ways of thinking to improve their mental health and well-being.
- Receive feedback and guidance from the counsellor.
- Reflect on their progress and identify areas for improvement.
- Be encouraged to take an active role in their own healing and personal growth.
It’s important to remember that counselling is a collaborative process, and the individual should feel comfortable and safe to express themselves. The counsellor will work with the individual to create a treatment plan that addresses their specific needs and concerns. The individual should also feel free to ask any questions they may have about the process.
The length of the counseling process can vary depending on the individual’s specific needs and goals. Some people may only need a few sessions to address a specific concern, while others may benefit from ongoing counseling to address more complex or long-term issues.
Counseling sessions usually last 50 minutes, and the frequency of the sessions will depend on the individual’s needs, goals, and the counselor’s recommendations. Some people may benefit from weekly sessions, while others may need more or less frequent sessions.
Short-term counseling, also known as solution-focused therapy, typically involves 6-20 sessions and focuses on addressing specific problems and finding solutions. Long-term counseling, also called psychoanalytic therapy, can last for several months to years and aims to help clients understand and work through deep-seated issues
It’s important to note that the counseling process is unique to each individual, and the length of the process will depend on the individual’s specific needs and goals. The counselor will work with the individual to create a treatment plan that addresses their concerns and will monitor progress to ensure that the counseling is effective.
In summary, the length of the counseling process can vary depending on the individual’s specific needs and goals, and can range from a few sessions to several months or years. The counselor will work with the individual to create a treatment plan and monitor progress to ensure that the counseling is effective.
Some people may benefit from weekly sessions, while others may need more or less frequent sessions.
It is worth checking with your health insurers as the criteria differs from provider to provider
We offer you a free 15 minutes phone or video call so that you can meet your counsellor, ask any questions and ensure you are comfortable with their working approach before you commit to therapy.
Yes, all our counsellors are governed by a strict code of conduct and confidentiality is paramount.
