Finding a Counselling

Over an average year, around one in four people will experience some kind of mental health problem - whether it is due to work-related stress, a family crisis, or something more serious like abuse. Depression is the most common mental illness, affecting one in five people.

Sometimes just taking some time out to look after yourself, de-stress and relax is enough to help with your state of mind, but in some cases people need a little bit more. Counselling can help to address issues which may be contributing to stress, anxiety and depression. Counselling and complementary therapies work quite nicely together because whilst counselling is dealing with the underlying issues, the massage or other complementary therapy is helping to reaffirm a calmer state of mind. As a complementary therapist, I studied some basic counselling skills as part of my training and I like to think that I am a good listener but I am not a counsellor – far from it! If I feel that a client of mine would benefit from counselling in addition to their treatment with me, then I would suggest it to them and/or refer them on to a counsellor.

Of course, the decision to undertake counselling is not one that anyone takes lightly. Many consider the idea for months or even years before deciding to take the plunge. The main hurdle anyone must overcome before opening themselves up to counselling is accepting they have a problem that needs to be dealt with. Often friends and family will try to encourage the person to accept they need help, but the decision must ultimately come from the person themselves.

Finding the right counsellor is essential. Counsellors often specialise in certain areas, so it’s important the individual finds one that addresses their specific needs, with an approach they are comfortable with. It can be quite a daunting task finding a counsellor nowadays what with their being so many different approaches. I personally think it has become overly complicated for people to decide on whom to go see - person centred, gestalt, transactional analysis, core process, psychotherapy, integrative, humanistic, cognitive – the list goes on. You almost need to be an expert in counselling yourself to know which one to go for! My advice would be to do some research – check out what the different approaches are and whether you think they will help you – give a few counsellors a call to discuss what they offer. Some counsellors give a free first meeting to discuss their techniques which might be worth giving a go before committing to seeing them regularly.

When choosing a counsellor, it is important to ensure that they are fully qualified to practise. Being accredited by a professional body, such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), means that the counsellor will have met several criteria including completing a certain number of hours in training and practising under supervision.

To find a local therapist, I would recommend checking out the BACP website or the Counselling Directory. Both sites have a ‘Find a Therapist’ search facility. On the Counselling Directory, each counsellor listed has their own profile page with information about themselves, their approaches, what areas they deal with, and all their training, qualification, experience and fees. It also has lots of informative articles written by counsellors, as well as comprehensive information on all kinds of distress to help people identify their problems and become informed, not scared. There’s also a blog that reports the latest health news and developments.

At The Healing Rooms in Bristol, where I practice complementary therapies, there are a number of counsellors and psychotherapists, several of which are BACP accredited and listed with the Counselling Directory. Here are their details if you would like to get in touch with them:

Mo Cahill - 0117 973 6503 or 07922 254 618
Natalie Brooks - 07973 267232
Helen Gunson - 0117 951 7878

Other related external links:
UKCP
Relate
Counselling Society