Hi, I am AnnMarie. Well done for taking your first step into counselling. I fully appreciate that it takes great strength and courage to take this step. I am a psychodynamic trained counsellor who offers long and short term therapy, depending on your needs. I strive to create a welcoming, safe, comfortable and confidential therapeutic space, where you can explore what is currently challenging you. In your therapy sessions, you can be fully and authentically you without any fear of judgement. I am there to listen and support whilst you explore your thoughts, feelings, experiences and behaviours. You are the expert on you, I will be alongside you listening, interpreting and supporting whilst you gain a clearer understanding of who you are and why.
Personal Touch
When I am not working directly in practice with my clients, or updating my skills and knowledge, you can find me out and about enjoying walks in nature. There is usually a camera in hand too! If you do visit my Facebook page, you will see some of my photos used in my posts.
Alongside this, I can also be found with my head in a good book!
Client Focus
I work 1-1 with both children and adults, on a wide range of challenges that can occur.
My therapy space is set up with two different rooms to support both 'typical' talking therapy as well as a more creative approach. Although the creative room is used more by my younger clients, it is also available for adults who may want this type of approach as well.
Background
I am a Psychodynamic trained practitioner, working one to one with clients. In this type of therapy, it is about helping you to understand how your experiences have shaped your thoughts and behaviours. Most of our behaviour happens unconsciously, therefore working psychodynamically, it gives the opportunity to bring to consciousness what it is that is driving us. I am trained to work with therapeutically with both children and adults to help support with a range of things that may be causing you challenge.
My previous background was working as a teacher and senior leader in schools, particularly Special Educational Needs provision. I feel that many of the skills and knowledge that I built up over the 25 years in education are transferable to my current work as a therapist.
Therapy Approach
I am trained in working in a psychodynamic way. In a nutshell, this means that I will support you to understand what is unconsciously driving your thoughts, behaviours and feelings. All our behaviour is unconsciously determined and we may not fully understand why we behave, think or feel in a certain way. However, by exploring your past experiences (recent and further back) and finding the links between these and the ‘here and now’, we can bring to your conscious awareness the reasons for your current thoughts, feelings and behaviours. Once you have a conscious awareness, you can then have a clearer understanding of yourself and are also in a more informed position to make choices about any changes you may wish to make.
Therapy explained
Psychodynamic
Psychodynamic therapy focuses on unconscious processes as they are manifested in a person’s present behavior, with the goals of self-awareness and understanding of the influence of the past on present behavior.
