An Introductory Meeting is a no-obligation way to get a sense of one another and to see if there is a collaborative rapport between us. It allows you to to talk about what’s troubling you or what you want to work on, and to begin to identify the type of help you might need in order to best achieve your aims. A first meeting gives you time to sketch out what you want, to receive preliminary feedback if you need it, and to ask any questions about what this practice might be able to offer you if further work is appropriate.

If your presentation does not appear conducive to doing psychotherapy at the moment, or if another service or approach may be more appropriate to what your needs appear to be, then this first meeting can sometimes be a place where you might identify that (if not, then Assessment may do so).

☞ You can stop after an Introductory Meeting and are under no obligation to return.

⚠️ Please note that attending an Introductory Meeting does not guarantee you an assessment or psychotherapy space. Availability of spaces, and many different factors in your presentation need to be assessed to determine whether psychotherapy is viable for your aims and expectations.

I first ask all new patients to read and sign my professional boundaries agreement before we begin any assessment. This details the conditions under which we agree to do the assessment together, and provides each new person who wants to be assessed a framework that optimises conditions that will help you achieve your aims. The agreement takes around 10 to 15 minutes to read and is welcomed as a source of security by patients who are genuinely motivated to understand the source of their problems.

After signing our agreement, new patients who want to pursue psychotherapy undertake a comprehensive psychosocial assessment, which can take up to four sessions to arrive at a summary analysis of what is causing your problems.   During those sessions we go through the details of your form and discuss all of the aspects of your history to arrive at a deeper understanding. If you are seeking counselling, an in-depth assessment is not required, but you will still be asked to share your history, problems and aims.

Assessment potentially saves you a great deal of time and money by clarifying your struggles and needs within a short amount of time. Assessment allows us to gather information that will highlight your needs, lifestyle, habits, existing support, history, self-view, and general circumstances.

If counselling fits your needs then, after filling in the forms, assessment need only involve a short discussion in one session, with a brief summary understanding conveyed to you instead of a more detailed analysis.

In the last assessment meeting I explain my summary analysis to you, which will help you understand the origins of your problems and how you are maintaining them. This includes any potential obstacles I see to you achieving your aims for therapy, and some of the therapeutic tasks my practice can offer you to help you achieve your aims.

If my practice is not appropriate for your needs, expectations, or presentation, I can usually recommend alternative types of help that may be more appropriate for you to investigate.

☞ Assessment does not imply an automatic offer of a weekly therapy space. After assessment, if you want to pursue psychotherapy and there isn’t a suitable weekly space available for you to start immediately, you may be offered the option of joining my waiting list. If you are unable or unwilling to wait then seeking the help of another service may allow you to get started sooner with someone else. But at least you will now know what to look for.

Each psychotherapy, counselling or personal development session takes place at the same time and on the same day each week, attending in-person or via video call if you prefer.  Ad hoc or random attendance is also possible for counselling, but sessions can only be booked when specific dates are advertised on the Appointments page.

Optimal conditions for successful psychotherapy include a strong, trusting alliance between patient and therapist, with good motivation for change and growth, with maximum honesty and openness as the foundation of any healthy relationship. An essential aspect of a growth mindset is the understanding that it is not possible to heal, change and grow by staying inside our familiar comfort zone.

⏱ There is a trial period of six weeks when you start counselling or psychotherapy, to allow both of us to assess whether or not the relationship is collaborative enough to achieve the aims you have for therapy. This helps you further avoid the potential for wasting your time and money.

IGenerally speaking, brief work is anything up to 12 sessions. Short-term work (up to 25 sessions) is more appropriate for counselling and symptom-management that focusses on specific symptoms and methods to address those symptoms. Medium- (up to 45 sessions) and longer-term work is required for depth psychotherapy, including Trauma Work, and for resolving the root causes of your symptoms.

Regular weekly sessions of 50 minutes duration are standard practice regardless of duration of therapy. 50 minute sessions allow you to concentrate on your goals at a steady pace, maintain momentum, develop new habits, and apply what you gain from each session during the week.

Review sessions can be requested at any time throughout our work (after session 16) and allow for a formal or informal reflection on motivation, commitment and progress, re-establishing aims and focus.

Reviewing our work together and looking at gains and saying our goodbyes is also a healthy, constructive way to bring the relationship to an end when you are ready.

How we choose to end our relationships often reveals more about who we are than any other aspect of the relationship itself. Ending psychotherapy well - like ending a personal relationship well - is a good way of securing in your mind and body the healing experiences and the good work you did during therapy.

☞ Patients can stop therapy at any time. Giving a minimum of 7 days notice to finish weekly therapy is helpful in allowing us to round off the work respectfully, and to cover any remaining points, clear up any misunderstandings, or unanswered questions. And offers a chance to review your progress and achievements.

Giving notice also allows us to discuss options like follow-up sessions, maintenance tasks to keep you going, or tapering attendance off before discharge to make finishing more gradual. 

Psychotherapy in this practice relies on the formation of an honest, respectful, trusting relationship between patient and therapist. Depth psychotherapy is therefore not appropriate for everyone. Here are a few reasons why psychotherapy in this practice may be contra-indicated:

• If you are in a mental health crisis and have a high risk of suicidal or homicidal behaviour. Or if you are so mentally fragile or disconnected from shared reality that even mild change feels too threatening for you.

• If you are so resistant to your own experiences that even attending sessions presents you with very high stress levels and conflicted feelings (ambivalence) about doing therapy. Psychotherapy is effective only when you have a genuine interest in facing and knowing yourself as you are right now, which can sometimes feel uncomfortable.

• If you ‘act out’ your destructive impulses with no conscience, particularly when your expectations are not met. A small minority of patients start therapy with an attitude that acts to sabotage the help they have asked for. Such individuals often hold childhood entitlement beliefs that a therapist should be a psychological punching bag who accepts all of the patient’s behaviours no matter how obnoxious! Psychotherapy must be strongly collaborative from the start, not conflicted and stressful. And your psychotherapist’s role is one of challenging self-defeating or toxic interpersonal behaviours, not approving of them.

• If you have ingrained habits of deception, routine lying, disloyalty, dishonesty, or other behaviours that sabotage trust in relationships, you will not be a suitable candidate for the kind of psychotherapy I offer, unless you are willing to radically alter your approach with much greater honesty and courage

• If your level of engagement, motivation and interest are incompatible with your aims for therapy. Poor attendance, lack of interest, or low level of engagement with the work make therapeutic growth unlikely and turn therapy into nothing more than an expensive chat once a week