The person-centred approach to counselling, developed by Carl Rogers, is founded on the belief that individuals have an innate capacity for growth and self-understanding.

As a person-centred counsellor, I am committed to providing you with:

• unconditional positive regard (accepting you as you are in each moment),

• empathy (understanding you from your point of view),

• congruence (being real and authentic with you).

For me, this is so much more than an approach but rather a way of being. I believe you are the expert of yourself and a person worthy of being heard, seen and understood.

I will journey alongside you as we explore your difficult experiences, moving towards self-acceptance and a deeper understanding of yourself. I employ a curious perspective towards you and your story. This encourages you to move beyond your self-judgment and make sense of your past experiences, decisions, relationships, behaviours, thought patterns and emotions.

I incorporate somatic awareness into my practice which is tailored to support your needs as an individual. This can involve guiding you to connect more deeply to emotions and sensations in your body, allowing you to process and release dense energy you may have been carrying from traumatic experiences.

I also offer psychoeducation on Polyvagal Theory in which the knowledge you gain about your autonomic nervous system can empower you to respond effectively to dysregulation (overwhelm). You will learn how your autonomic nervous system responds to perceived safety, threat and danger. With knowledge about the three neural states, you can become confident at identifying, mapping and managing your stress responses.

Learning how to self-regulate effectively can greatly improve your quality of life. In our sessions we can experiment with various somatic exercises to find what works for you as an individual. We would work collaboratively to find tools that help you to respond to dysregulation in the moment but that also work towards shaping an overall more grounded and balanced nervous system.