Meet Paul
Hello, my name’s Paul and I’m a qualified Psychotherapeutic Counsellor.
I aim to provide a space for you to safely express and explore what you are experiencing and feeling, and I am curious about what it means to be you. I offer a place for you to be seen and heard without judgement or rejection, and to explore things that may not be easy for you to express with others in your life. We will move at your pace and may use a variety of materials and techniques in-person such as; play dough, visual cards, breathing and relational observations in our work together.
What of yourself do you find hard to talk about with others?
I believe the identities we have, such as gender, race, sexuality and ability, affect how we navigate the world and its social structures, as well as how we see and feel about ourselves. The stories and events we grow up with become an internal dialogue that shapes our meaning of who we are. These events and stories can be big and life changing or much more subtle. They impact the relationship we have with ourselves and with others.
What do you struggle with in relationship to others or with yourself?
Working with the principle of mind and body connection, and remaining curious about this, our sessions can help to offer further insights for self-enquiry. In turn this can develop a deeper understanding of your relationship to self and to others.
Things I work with
Abuse, ADHD/ADD, Addiction, Anger Management, Anxiety, Bereavement, Cultural Issues, Depression, Health Related Issues, Exploring Identity, Lack of Clarity and Direction in Life, Grief & Loss, Neurodiversity, Obsessions, OCD, PTSD, Redundancy, Relationship Difficulties, Low Self-Esteem, Self-Harm, Lack of Self-Worth, Sex-Related Issues, Sexual Identity, Sexuality, Stress, Substance Dependency, Childhood Trauma, Adulthood Trauma, Problems at Work
My Approach and How Therapy May Look and Feel
Either in-person or online, momentum and consistency are a key part of the therapeutic process. Turning up regularly and not knowing what to say, or how you feel is as important as knowing what you do. Seemingly Irrelevant or random sounding things can often prove to be important areas of exploration, and the subtle things that show up may help us explore what is just on the edge of your awareness.
Whilst the Humanistic approach is an umbrella term for an expanding number of practices, at its core is the belief that you do not need fixing and that we all have the capacity for growth. My approach is existential-phenomenological and works relationally. With this in mind, we will look and feel into how your world and ways of being have been shaped, what has shaped them and what meaning and beliefs you have taken from them. There is no wrong or right way to be in the world, it is about us working together and finding out what is happening for you.
The process of therapy is not always linear and smooth, and understanding oneself can sometimes be uncomfortable and messy. All these parts of you are welcome in our sessions and form an important part of our exploration together. I am here to support you in this process.
“Loneliness does not come from having no people around you but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important to you….Healing is learning to speak what matters most so you’re no longer alone with it.”