Welcome to my website. I am a UKCP accredited Relational Integrative Psychotherapist. I work one to one with adults (18 and over), offering weekly sessions of 50 minutes. I work afternoons and evenings in my therapy room in Heaton (see on map). I also offer online therapy. Please ask about appointment times. My current fee is £50 per session.
I know what a brave step it can be starting therapy (I’ve been there). Research now shows that the relationship between client and therapist is the most important factor in determining the success of any therapy (more so than the type of therapy), so it is really important to find a therapist you feel you can have a good relationship with. I offer a free initial appointment of up to 50 minutes so you can get an idea of what it would be like to work together.
I have always been fascinated by the many ways we search for meaning in our lives, and in the ways we support each other (or fail to). I know how amazing and transformative good relationships of all kinds can be, and how painful it can be when we struggle to find or keep them. I am passionate about helping people learn to relate to themselves, others and the world in the fullest possible way.
People come to therapy for all sorts of reasons: you may want some support with a major life event or transition; you may be experiencing anxiety or depression or low self-esteem, or be feeling dissatisfied with your relationships; you may be feeling stuck or want to explore and better understand who you are and what you want from life.
Whatever you’re going through now and however you’re coping (or struggling to) is understandable in the context of the family and society you grew up in, and of everything that has happened to you in your life since then. You aren’t a symptom, diagnosis or disorder, you are a unique and amazing human being, doing the best you can in the circumstances, as we all are.
A good, trusting therapeutic relationship can help you to feel accepted and valued just as you are. Together we will learn about you and your ways of relating, about what works for you and what doesn’t. The more safe you feel, and the more awareness you have, the more possible it becomes to change, heal and grow.
Central to my approach is the understanding that everything is connected. Very often the work of therapy becomes about much more than the thing that first causes someone to seek it. For this reason I don’t find it helpful to list issues that I do or don’t work with, but if you are struggling with something specific and aren’t sure if I can help, please ask.
I hold a Postgraduate Diploma in Relational Integrative Psychotherapy from Scarborough Counselling and Psychotherapy Training Institute (SCPTI) and have been working with clients in the charitable sector and in private practice for seven years. My background is in visual arts and literature. I find art and stories can be powerful tools in helping us to understand ourselves and the world.
For more information about the type of therapy I offer, click here: Relational Integrative Psychotherapy.
If you have any questions, or if you think we might be a good match and would like to book a free initial appointment, get in touch, I’d really love to hear from you.
I am accredited by the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). I am fully insured and DBS checked and I abide by the ethical principles of SCPTI and UKCP: UKCP Ethical Principles and Code of Professional Conduct
“Every act of communication is an act of tremendous courage in which we give ourselves over to two parallel possibilities: the possibility of planting into another mind a seed sprouted in ours and watching it blossom into a breath-taking flower of mutual understanding; and the possibility of being wholly misunderstood, reduced to a withering weed. Candour and clarity go a long way in fertilizing the soil, but in the end there is always a degree of unpredictability in the climate of communication — even the warmest intention can be met with frost. Yet something impels us to hold these possibilities in both hands and go on surrendering to the beauty and terror of conversation, that ancient and abiding human gift. And the most magical thing, the most sacred thing, is that whichever the outcome, we end up having transformed one another in this vulnerable-making process of speaking and listening.” (Maria Popova)
Beth Sibbald 