Claude Distefano
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hi, I’m Claude, a Counsellor and CBT Psychotherapist accredited with both BACP and BABCP. I have 15 years’ experience working in the NHS and private practice. I help people explore and work through a broad range of difficulties and problems that adversely affect their mental and emotional wellbeing.
I have substantial experience working with Low mood and Depression, various types of Anxiety such as Agoraphobia, Generalised Anxiety, excessive Worry and its effect on sleep, Panic, Social Anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Phobias, Health Anxiety, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and others. I also work with other presenting issues such as Irritability & Anger, Shame and Guilt, Procrastination, Stress, Perfectionism, Low Self-Esteem and/or Loss of Self-confidence, Bereavement and Loss, Loneliness, and the impact of Long-term Health conditions. This is not an exhaustive list.
If you would like to discuss whether my skills and expertise may be of benefit to you, I offer an initial 20-minute telephone consultation free of charge and without obligation. Please do not hesitate to get in touch.
I work with adults (18+) and offer either in-person sessions in Farnham, Surrey or remote sessions by videocall.
Experience and Approach:
I have extensive experience in Counselling and CBT and I also have a special interest in Low Self-Esteem and lead a small team of therapists who run group courses on Improving Self-Esteem. Through no fault of our own, we often find ourselves caught up in patterns of thought and behaviour which create vicious circles that exacerbate the problem. This makes it difficult to consider alternative perspectives or solutions and we often end up feeling stuck.
For example, if you suffer from low self-esteem you are likely to hold negative views about yourself, often feel bad about yourself and probably feel quite anxious about the way others might perceive you. A vicious circle may develop involving worry, loss of confidence, avoidance of social situations, damaging self-criticism and low mood. These factors worsen the problem and your confidence is eroded even further.
I regularly attend training workshops and seminars as part of continuing professional development. Whereas most of these involve further advanced training in CBT, I also take an interest in other modalities such as Compassion Focused Therapy.
My manner is characterised by fundamental person-centred attitudes of warmth, non-judgemental listening, and empathy. I work mainly from a CBT perspective which is a type of goal-directed talking therapy with a practical flavour to help you practice key aspects of what we would have discussed together and bring about positive shifts. I also draw upon other modalities if appropriate for an individual’s needs.
Should you decide to work with me, I will work collaboratively with you throughout our therapy to develop a shared understanding of your difficulties and struggles. We will consider what factors may be playing a part in keeping the problem/s going and together, we will explore and discuss ways to bring about positive change and/or a healthy adaptation to challenging circumstances or life events.
Sessions are typically 50 minutes long and held once a week but other arrangements may be possible depending on your personal circumstances.
Training, qualifications & experience
Throughout my career, I worked with a variety of client age groups, backgrounds and presenting issues. For the past 13 years I have been working as a CBT therapist with an 'Improving Access to Psychological Therapies' (IAPT) service where, among other duties, I conduct assessments and engage in face-to-face clinical work. I also have a special interest in Low Self-Esteem and lead a small team of co-facilitators who run a regular group course on Improving Self-Esteem. If you suffer from low self-esteem you are likely to hold negative views about yourself, often feel bad about yourself and probably feel quite anxious in the company of others. This generally leads to avoidance of social encounters and gives rise to damaging self-criticism. CBT may be helpful to work through such blocks and difficulties.
I also regularly attend training workshops and seminars as part of my commitment towards continuing professional development. These involve further advanced training in CBT and I also take an interest in other modalities such as Compassion Focused Therapy and Mindfulness.
Qualifications:
- Postgraduate Diploma in Evidence-based Psychological Treatments (CBT), University of Reading, 2012.
- Master of Arts (Counselling & Psychotherapy), Liverpool John Moores University, 2010.
- Postgraduate Diploma (Counselling & Psychotherapy), Liverpool John Moores University, 2007.
- Bachelor of Psychology (Hons), University of Malta, 2003.
Member organisations
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.
The BABCP is the lead organisation for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in the UK. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in the practice, theory or development of CBT. BABCP also provides accreditation for CBT therapists. BABCP accredited members adhere to the Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics in the Practice of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies, and are willing to be scrutinised in this adherence as required.
BACP is one of the UK’s leading professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy with around 60,000 members. The Association has several different categories of membership, including Student Member, Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP, Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Accred) and Senior Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Snr Acccred).
Registered and accredited members are listed on the BACP Register, which shows that they have demonstrated BACP’s recommended standards for training, proficiency and ethical practice. The BACP Register was the first register of psychological therapists to be accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
Accredited and senior accredited membership are voluntary categories for members who choose to undertake a rigorous application and assessment process to demonstrate additional standards around practice, training and supervision.
Individual members will have completed an appropriate counselling or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but they won’t appear on the BACP Register until they've demonstrated that they meet the standards for registration. Student members are still in the process of completing their training.
All members are bound by the BACP Ethical Framework and a Professional Conduct Procedure.
Accredited register membership
The Accredited Register Scheme was set up in 2013 by the Department of Health (DoH) as a way to recognise organisations that hold voluntary registers which meet certain standards. These standards are set by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
This therapist has indicated that they belong to an Accredited Register.
The Accredited Register Scheme was set up in 2013 by the Department of Health (DoH) as a way to recognise organisations that hold voluntary registers which meet certain standards. These standards are set by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
This therapist has indicated that they belong to an Accredited Register.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Fees
£75.00 per session
Free initial telephone session
Concessions offered for
Health Insurance/EAP
Additional information
£75 per session (50 minutes). I offer limited concessions for those who may find this too expensive. Payment by cash or online Banking (BACS, Faster Payments, etc) after every session please. I request a minimum of 24-hour notice for cancellations or the full session fee will apply.
Sessions are normally 50 minutes long across all presentation problems except PTSD which may occasionally involve 1-2 longer sessions involving higher fees, in which case these will be discussed with you and planned in advance.
Format of sessions:
Short or longer-term face-to-face, telephone or Zoom remote sessions. Face-to-face (in-person) sessions will be available every Tuesday from 5th Sept 2023 onwards. Often, a course of therapy involves 6-12 sessions but sometimes more may be needed. To manage the duration of therapy, I will regularly review and discuss our therapeutic progress with you in an open and transparent manner and we will decide together whether more sessions will be helpful. In the early stages of therapy we will set therapy goals to guide our work and help us remain focused on what we aim to achieve.
When I work
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Sessions by appointment only usually held on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Other arrangements are possible on an individual, ad-hoc basis. Please do not hesitate to contact me to discuss.
Further information
Limits of Confidentiality
Information shared during therapy is held confidentially except in the following circumstances which would warrant disclosure: If a client poses a serious risk of harm to themselves or others or they are at significant risk of harm or exploitation from others; Child Protection or Child/Adult Safeguarding issues; Information about acts of terrorism.
I am registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) which means personal data collected, stored and/or processed will be in compliance with Data Protection legislation including the European Union's General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) which came into force on 25 May 2018.
