InSync CounsellingChesterfield, Derbyshire

Welcome to Insync Counselling and Psychotherapy For Individuals and Couples

HEAL GROW THRIVE

If you are looking for a face-to-face counsellor or psychotherapist in the Chesterfield and Baslow area or would prefer online counselling or psychotherapy, I hope that the information provided here gives you an idea of the type counselling and psychotherapy that I offer and how I work as a counsellor, so that taking that first step in counselling feels possible.

A WAY THROUGH

It is natural for us all to have feelings such as sadness, anxiety, self doubt, fear, anger, loneliness and grief during the ebb and flow of our daily lives. When these feelings persist or occur with enough frequency that they overwhelm us or limit our enjoyment of life, the support of a qualified counsellor or psychotherapist can be of great benefit. If you are feeling persistently low, are experiencing distress or conflict in your relationships, are experiencing anxiety, sadness or despair, feel stressed, overwhelmed or simply feel that happiness eludes you, please read on to discover how my psychotherapy practice could help you.

We are all born with unique potential and the capacity for growth and change. The personal skills and attributes that can see us through life's challenges lie within each and every one of us. Sometimes though, the challenges that come our way can feel overwhelming. Life events and experiences can leave us disconnected from our inner resources and we lose faith that things can ever be different. This is where my Chesterfield based counselling and psychotherapy practice can make a big difference. Not by offering advice or solutions, but by supporting and guiding your journey towards deeper understanding and empowerment; awakening and harnessing dormant qualities that might otherwise remain hidden and closed to you. While collaboration forms the basis of our counselling relationship, you always remain the expert on your own life.

How Could Counselling Help Me?

As a skilled counsellor and psychotherapist I can help you with many aspects of your life that may be feeling problematic. I am here for you to express whatever you need to bring into sessions; often it can be the first time you have disclosed certain feelings to anyone else. Sometimes it can be hard to find someone who can truly 'see' you and help you to identify the origin of your struggles. I encourage the real you to emerge and offer you transparency and honesty in our relationship. Impartiality, empathy and non-judgement are simply words on a page until you feel these in practice; only then can you begin to trust that you are in the right place. Counselling can enable you to gain greater insight and self-awareness and reveal how certain beliefs and behaviours could be causing you distress or stopping you from experiencing the life you would like. Counselling and psychotherapy offers many benefits including:

• Relieving emotional distress
  
• A better understanding of yourself, your patterns in relationships and your unique needs
  
• Improved resilience in the face of life's challenges
  
• Gaining new perspectives, which in turn offers up new choices and the potential for change and growth
  
• Understanding what drives your behaviour and the barriers that limit your enjoyment and satisfaction with life
  
• Developing confidence and trust in your own capabilities
  
• Finding resloutions to long-standing concerns, issues, worries or things you feel stuck with
  
• Identifying your goals and strategies to meet them
  
• Gaining insight into old patterns and creating new ones

Each therapy session is unique to each individual. Therapy can be short-term (counselling) to address specific concerns, or in-depth (psychotherapy) to explore more complex issues, long-standing concerns, or continuing personal growth.

What Can Counselling and Psychotherapy Address?

Counselling and psychotherapy can help with many common conditions. Often it can work on the root cause of issues, exploring and resolving them to secure lasting change. Often, the changes that occur may be broader in scope than originally anticipated. My Chesterfield counselling and psychotherapy practice is particulary effective at addressing:

• Difficulties with relationships. Maybe, for example, you are drawn into unrewarding or destructive relationships or relationships that fail to meet your needs. Do you have difficulties with commitment, or maybe you find it hard to trust others or assert yourself.
• Difficulties with feelings.  Do you carry within you feelings that you don't really fit in anywhere? Or maybe you struggle to see youself as others do? Are you experiencing imposter syndrome? Or maybe you hate feelings and would rather avoid them altogether. 
• Complex Trauma. This can present in many different ways that effectively disrupt our relationships and enjoyment of life. It can manifest as ongoing depression and anxiety, difficulty trusting self and others, excessive negative thinking, feeling overwhelmed, helpless to change, angry and frustrated or drawn to behaviours that undermine our wellbeing. Inner harmony can feel impossible to find and maintain if we are dealing with unresolved complex trauma. Healing is always possible with the right support.
• Anxiety disorders, including Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Social Anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD) and anxiety specific to certain situations such as public speaking.
• Stress. Symptoms of stress can include feeling irritable, impatient, intolerant, mistrustful, hypervigilant and paranoid. Are you finding it hard to make decisions or do you feel hijacked by strong emotions? If we are unable to switch off our stress response, chronic stress will dictate the experiene of our everyday life and leave us vulnerable to anxiety and depression. We can choose creativity over reactivity once we have a clearer understanding of our own stress response and how we can improve it.
• Depression.
• Low self-esteem and low self-confidence. Feelings of worthlessness.
• Behaviours that interfere with your enjoyment of life, such as perfectionism, anger, lack of assertiveness, self-sabotage, procrastination, passive agressive behaviour, envy and jealousy. These all have underlying causes that counselling can help you to explore and resolve.
• Guilt and shame.
• Bullying.
• Addictive behaviours
• Bereavement, grief and loss; particularly complex grief and loss
• PTSD. Symptoms can include intrusive thoughts, ruminating, nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety,. depression, panic attacks, problems with sleeping and memory and feelings of being out of control of one's life, lost or fragmented
• Life adjustments such as parenting, redundancy, divorce and separation, ageing, dementia, menopause.
• Abuse

What You Can Expect From Me

I am an accredited member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. In addition to being trained in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, I am a Certified Clinical Anxiety Treatment Professional (CCATP) and Trauma-Informed Therapist. In addition, I incorporate Object Relations, Self-Psychology, Somatic Psychotherapy, IFS, and Polyvagal Informed therapy into my work. I integrate different aspects of my training and experience so that I can offer you a tailored approach that respects your individuality and supports your desired outcomes.

As a good working relationship is the foundation for change, acceptance, warmth, respect, non-judgement, empathy and trust will be the building blocks of our work together. Growth and healing begin with a strong empathetic connection between us, so that is where our work will start. But it takes more than this. You will be placing your trust in a complete stranger and this is an undertaking that I take very seriously. We will work at a pace that is right for you, gaining accurate insight into your emotional landscape and adapting interventions that are going to nurture you and secure progress. I offer a free initial telephone consultation, so that you have the opportunity to see if you feel comfortable with me and can ask questions without obligation. It is also an opportunity for me to ensure that I have the relevant experience to help you and if I feel your concern will be better addressed by another professional or even if alternatives to psychotherapy might be more beneficial, I will discuss this with you. This session can also be used to explore any questions you might have, ideas around your goals and what you hope to achieve; if you are unsure of specific goals, I can work with you to identify some. Should you wish to proceed, I will work with you to build a therapeutic environment that is best suited to your needs. Goals are regularly reviewed and progress monitored to ensure that you are getting the most out of your sessions.

How Can I Access Your Services?

I offer both online and face-to-face psychotherapy and counselling. I use Doxy.me (no software downloads required) which is HIPAA compliant and meets industry standards for encryption. Further details available on request. If you would prefer face-to-face counselling or psychotherapy, I have a relaxing, welcoming room in the South West part of Chesterfield within easy reach of Baslow, Matlock and Wingerworth, where we can explore your issues without interruption.

I understand that access can present obstacles and that some clients prefer their own home base. Please see my FAQ page for further details.