People come to me for help with a wide range of issues. I usually say that my main area is helping people with transitional stages of their life because there are so many times in adult life that we feel unprepared for change, loss or uncertainty. Often in these moments we feel like we’re losing a sense of who we are and this can lead to us feeling anxious, angry, frustrated or sad, or all the above and then some. These feelings are all perfectly normal parts of our human emotional experience, but when they stop us feeling able to function, or start to impact on our lives, relationships and ability to cope, then having an independent person to talk to about the situation and where you can explore your emotions objectively can really help.

Additional areas of focus: Stress, Anxiety, Addictions, Trauma and abuse, Grief, Anger management, Career difficulties, Depression, Coaching, Compassion fatigue, ADHD, Attachment Issues, Blended Family Issues, Control Issues, Divorce and Separation, Family Problems, Guilt and Shame, Infidelity, Jealousy, Life Purpose, Self-Harm, Self-Love, Women’s Issues, Young Adult Issues.

Counselling and coaching are really just umbrella terms that cover quite an array of coaching and counselling approaches. Counselling can help you manage better day-to-day through increasing your insight and self-awareness, sourcing the root of the issues and the problematic thinking, and supporting you to find ways to cope. Coaching on the other hand works more in the present and is future-facing. The focus is more on helping you understand what you want in life and how to set and achieve goals.

Both Coaching and counselling can help help you identify what is holding you back, be more resilient and support you to create a life where you feel better. Within both models we'll identify and work towards the life goals that will help you move forward in your career, relationships, and home life. Both approaches will help you identify any core beliefs that are no longer serving you and encourage you on a journey of self-discovery.

But there are some key differences:

• Coaching is action orientated vs Counselling is coping orientated.
• Coaching helps you set and achieve goals vs Counselling helps you recognise and solve your problems in life.
• Coaching may take past experiences into consideration, but the focus is on the present and future
• Coaching focuses on you reaching your potential vs Counselling focuses on helping you be at peace with yourself and your life.

You may already have a clear idea which direction you want your support to go in, but it really doesn’t matter if you don’t yet know which approach is right for you. In early sessions we’ll be able to explore this further, and it may be that we move between both models at times; sometimes giving you space to work through what’s happening in your own time and then, where appropriate, helping you to focus on solutions and the future.

I understand that coming to therapy can feel like a big decision. Before you begin, I encourage to ask yourself these 3 questions:

• Why is this the right time for me to make the changes I want?
• How can I make space and time in my life to give myself the care and attention I deserve along this journey?
• If not now, then when?

This will depend on what you need from counselling, what you want to change and what obstacles might lie between you and that making that change. Some people have 3 or 4 sessions and find they have got everything they needed to move forwards, and to think and feel differently. Other people find that once they start unravelling the layers, that there is a lot more to understand about themselves than they first imagined. I don’t have a set number of sessions in mind, we will talk this through and work it out together.

I work using Zoom, which is a secure video platform and instant chat service - you can choose to work with me using video or instant messaging, which works the same way as using things like WhatsApp.

For each session I send you an invite for the agreed day and time and then hopefully the technology works on the day! You will need to find yourself a quiet, comfortable and private space where you won't be disturbed, but feel free to bring along a brew or a drink and to make yourself relaxed.

I also offer Walk-and-Talk therapy locally in and around Stockport, Greater Manchester. Please get in touch to find out more about this.

Sessions are £60 per hour. I offer a reduced rate of £50ph for self-paying under 28 year olds.

You can come weekly or fortnightly depending on what fits best for you. I encourage you to have a few weekly sessions initially so we can get to know each other.

Therapy can be hard work and tough emotionally, especially if you have come to talk about things you find upsetting or have been avoiding for a long time. I will sit with you no matter how big, small or uncomfortable your feelings feel, and for as long as you need to. I understand that it takes courage to face your feelings and make changes. I won’t ever make you talk about anything you don’t want to, and you will always be in control.

Yes, you might cry – a lot even, or maybe not at all… and that's okay, whatever your emotions are and however they come out is a natural part of your process and they are welcome in their rawest form in our sessions. It may also surprise you to know that therapy can be fun, relaxed and even funny at times. I take my role of counsellor extremely seriously, but I will also laugh with you and share those amazing moments in your life just as I will share in your sadness.

We’ll take a double seat on the roller-coaster and I’ll be with you all the way.

Walk-and-Talk is currently unavailable until further notice.

Taking your therapy outside can provide a natural, relaxed way to work through the same kinds of issues you would bring to a traditional counselling session. Studies have shown that being out in nature can help boost positive emotions and help us reflect on life's problems with different feelings and perspectives. Even just the act of breathing in fresh air and moving about can help us feel more motivated, and difficult emotions like loneliness, isolation, and anxiety can feel less overwhelming in a natural environment.

We arrange an initial online session so we can do some housekeeping, like discuss your needs and expectations from therapy, talk through any concerns and questions, and agree what kind of environment you would prefer to walk in. We then arrange to meet up locally somewhere out in nature, such as local park or nature spot.

Walks are low level, gently paced and suitable for most walking abilities - there are also lots of paved-path options for those who need accessibility for wheels.

All walks are within 30mins of Stockport, Greater Manchester.