Young People / Family Counselling

 

 

 

When counselling young people I can offer a safe and secure environment to work in.  Irrespective of age, sessions are confidential and cannot be discussed with parents / guardians unless prior agreement has been made.  This means I will clarify with the young person that it is their wish for information to be shared or discussed.  In such times I may be in a more mediating role between parent and child than that of counsellor to both parties which could result in a conflict of interest.  Separate meetings between all of us can be arranged or more often, parents are invited to join our session for the last 20 minutes or so.  

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If there is a need to break confidentiality due to serious harm to self or others then I have to take the appropriate action.  

 

On occasion and with the agreement of carers and school, it can be arranged for me to work within the school environment which can be less disruptive to a young person's routine.

 

If you have any questions or concerns about this, please do not hesitate to speak to me.

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Family / Attachment Focused Therapy (AFT)

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I can offer Attachment Focused Therapy to families who are struggling to build a positive bond with their child or wish to strengthen their bond.  It is an integrated therapeutic intervention which combines well researched methods of attachment theory and trauma recovery models along with aspects of creative arts therapies and play therapy in order to encourage growth and change in the relationship between the parent and child.

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The focus of the work is the relationship between the parent/carer and child.  The parent/carer become engaged in activities with their child which encourage positive emotional connections and it is through this development of trust in the primary attachment figure that attachment patterns can be altered and lives transformed.

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Talk and Creativity

 

My aim, as an integrative therapist, is to tailor therapy to each individual's or couple's needs – it is not a ‘one size fits all’ approach. Integrative therapy respects that we are all unique individuals.  I have found, when talking is not enough, using different art media or objects can open up communication particularly for clients who find it hard to articulate their feelings verbally.  Young people particularly respond to working creatively.

 

With this in mind, a 50 minute session can include the use of:

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• active imagination

• apps

• drama, role-play etc to articulate feelings

• dream work

• genograms

• Mindfulness including breathing and grounding exercises

• mood cards

• painting, drawing, clay work etc to express feelings

• sand tray

• stones, shells or buttons

• talk

• toys and games 

• visualisations - guided imagery

• written word e.g. letters, diary, poetry etc

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