Answers to your questions

Your first session is an opportunity for us to begin getting to know each other and explore what has brought you to counselling. You don't need to arrive knowing exactly what to say or where to begin.

We'll start wherever feels right for you, at your own pace. There is no set programme or expectation that you need to talk about anything before you feel ready.

If you’d like to know more, I’ve written about what actually happens in a first counselling session.

There is no set number of sessions you need to commit to. Some people find shorter-term counselling helpful, while others choose to work together for longer.

We can regularly review how things are feeling and discuss what works best for you. You are never tied into a fixed number of sessions.

No. I won't tell you how to live your life or make decisions for you. My role is to work alongside you, helping you explore what you're experiencing and understand yourself more deeply.

Counselling is collaborative and led by what feels important to you. Together, we can explore patterns, emotions and experiences so that you can find the way forward that feels right for you.

People often wonder whether their problem is “serious enough” for counselling. You don’t need to be in crisis or have a diagnosis to seek support. If something is affecting how you feel, your relationships, your behaviour or your day-to-day life, then it is worth having space to explore it.

It’s understandable to wonder whether counselling will help, particularly if you’ve tried support before. Therapy isn’t about forcing change or promising a particular outcome. We’ll work together at your pace, regularly checking how the process feels for you and whether it is meeting your needs.

That’s completely okay. You don’t need to arrive knowing exactly what you want to say or where to begin. We can start with whatever feels present for you, and allow things to unfold naturally at your own pace.

It’s completely okay to feel emotional, uncertain or uncomfortable at times. Therapy can bring up difficult feelings, but you will never be expected to talk about anything before you feel ready. We can slow things down, pause, or explore what is happening together, always at your pace.

Counselling can support people experiencing anxiety, depression or low mood, relationship difficulties, substance misuse, neurodiversity, low confidence, significant life changes, or feeling stuck or overwhelmed.

You do not need to have a diagnosis or know exactly what is wrong. Sometimes people come to counselling simply because something does not feel right and they want to understand themselves and their experiences more deeply.

I offer in-person counselling in Southampton, welcoming clients from surrounding areas including Totton, Romsey, Eastleigh, Chandler’s Ford, Hythe, Marchwood, Lyndhurst, Brockenhurst and the wider New Forest.

Online counselling is also available to adults and adolescents across the UK.