What to Expect
What to Expect
The First Step
Making the decision to seek support from a psychologist can be a personal challenge. It is common for this process to evoke a wide range of questions. Do I really need therapy? Shouldn’t I be able to cope on my own? Will therapy really make a difference to my life? In order to assess your needs and explore any concerns, I actively encourage potential clients to have a chat with me on the phone or arrange to meet me in person before making the decision to commit to therapy
Life is filled with numerous transitions, stressful events, challenges, opportunities, losses and other difficult experiences. Support from a Psychologist provides a confidential setting in which to explore and assess issues which may be impacting your life and emotional well-being. This can provide relief from the sense of personal isolation which can often accompany emotional difficulties. With this comes the opportunity for exploration, understanding, new insight and the potential for change.
Once I have briefly discussed your main concerns over the phone I will normally offer a 90-minute initial assessment. This provides a chance to find more about what is going on, what may have contributed to the difficulties and then jointly agree the aim of the intervention. If the support is for a child or young person it is helpful to have the main caregivers at the assessment. I will normally spend time with the family altogether and with the child alone, if age-appropriate.
After the initial assessment, therapy sessions are generally 50 minutes long. The number of sessions vary depending on the type and complexity of the presenting problems. It is important to try to have regular sessions, which is usually weekly or fortnightly. I will review progress and goals with you at regular intervals to see how you are finding therapy. The ending of therapy will be planned as carefully as possible. This will involve discussing ways to manage in the future and reviewing what you have gained and found helpful during therapy.
The First Step
Making the decision to seek support from a psychologist can be a personal challenge. It is common for this process to evoke a wide range of questions. Do I really need therapy? Shouldn’t I be able to cope on my own? Will therapy really make a difference to my life? In order to assess your needs and explore any concerns, I actively encourage potential clients to have a chat with me on the phone or arrange to meet me in person before making the decision to commit to therapy
Once I have briefly discussed your main concerns over the phone I will normally offer a 90-minute initial assessment. This provides a chance to find more about what is going on, what may have contributed to the difficulties and then jointly agree the aim of the intervention. If the support is for a child or young person it is helpful to have the main caregivers at the assessment. I will normally spend time with the family altogether and with the child alone, if age-appropriate.
After the initial assessment, therapy sessions are generally 50 minutes long. The number of sessions vary depending on the type and complexity of the presenting problems. It is important to try to have regular sessions, which is usually weekly or fortnightly. I will review progress and goals with you at regular intervals to see how you are finding therapy. The ending of therapy will be planned as carefully as possible. This will involve discussing ways to manage in the future and reviewing what you have gained and found helpful during therapy.