Counselling & Psychotherapy with
David Parr MA B.Ed MBACP PG Dip.Couns MBPICS CCC Reg

About counselling

There are two main reasons why people think about seeing a counsellor:

1) Being in the middle of a crisis of some kind.
2) Wanting help with something that has been troubling you for some time.

Life has a way of throwing things at us that can test our ability to manage ourselves and the things we experience as we would like to. Sometimes we have been conditioned when we were very young to see things in ways that don't necessarily suit us when we are much older. Sometimes we think, feel and behave in ways that can make life feel bleak or even desolate.

My training has has incorprated Cognive Behaviour therapy (CBT) Psychodynamic practice and Person Centred (Humanistic) Approaches at Masters Degree level.

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy

CBT explores the relationship between our thoughts and beliefs and the affect these have on how we experience our lives. It's very easy to hold on to quite rigid ways of viewing and relating to different situations and life events. Very often, the choices we make about how to manage difficult experiences are so well learned that we make them automatically and perhaps without even thinking about them. CBT is very effective at helping you to explore alternative ways of viewing your experiences in ways that are more constructive and purposful. This in turn leads to healthy changes in the way you think about yourself and how you experience different situations.

Psychodynamics

Psychodynamics is concerned with the processes inside us that influence how we relate to ourseles, other people and life experiences. Some of these processes occur because of feelings that can be buried so deep within us, that they can appear to not be there at all. Sometimes these processes can make it very difficult to maintain harmony and contentment within ourselves and how we relate to others.

Making connections to some of these processes in counselling can innitially be quite a painful experience, but understanding how they can influence us can lead to greater independence and a more fulfilling life.

Person Centred of Humanistic Approach

The humanistic approach to therapy is concerned with our overall sense of 'wholeness' and our capacity to become all that we are able to become as growing individuals. At the heart of the practice of the humanistic approach is the belief that we all have within us our own natural capacity for self-discovery and self-acceptance. Person Centred Counselling helps us to tap in to our innate ability to value ourselves more fully and to feel more empowered.

Many people I see tell me they experience a significant decreace in their anxiety and a stronger sense of clarity after just one session. It's often a 'release' to feel you have been really listened to and understood without the judgements and restrictions that sometimes occur in other sorts of relationships.

Our first meeting together will provide you with an opportunity to get a strong sense of me as your potential counsellor while we discuss the issues you may want to work on. You will have a clear idea of how counselling can help your particular situation and how long it might take.

Should you decide to continue we will generally meet at the same time each week for six weeks and then discuss our work together and how you feel things are progressing. This is a good time to make any adjustments that might be helpful should you decide to continue.