Lesley Downs

Lesley Downs, award winning Couples Counsellor and Relationship Coach

• GHP Mental Health Awards 2023 - Lesley Downs Most Considerate Couples Counsellor (UK)
• Corporate Live Wire Innovation Excellence Awards 2022 - Lesley Downs Couples Therapy Practice of the Year (UK)
• GHP Mental Health Awards 2022 - Lesley Downs Most Considerate Couples Counsellor (UK)

Now offering face to face appointments in Chichester and Zoom video calls if preferred by the client.

Hi, thank you for checking out my profile, I know how difficult it is to take that first step towards asking for help, but I want you to know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and I want to help you move towards it, to live the life you want to live and have the relationships that you want to have.

I also understand how difficult it its to choose the right counsellor, you have to get the right person, someone who you think you will feel comfortable talking to and who is going to help you get where you want to be. It might help if I tell you a little about myself, I am a fully qualified, experienced, BACP registered counsellor and I specialise in Relationship Issues and Couples Counselling (I offer Relationship Counselling/Coaching to couples and individuals). I have also trained in the use of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Personal Development coaching. Prior to opening my own private practice, I worked with clients on behalf of Chichester Counselling Services (2008 to 2013), the NHS Time to Talk service in GP surgeries around Chichester, Bognor and East Wittering (2012 to 2013), and as an associate of a Portsmouth based coaching organisation. This all helped to give me the knowledge, professionalism and experience to set up Lesleydowns.co.uk and Seabreezecounsellingplus.co.uk

My private practice for Couples Counselling, Relationship Coaching/Counselling and Personal Development Coaching is based in central Chichester, with easy access to parking, bus and train links .

As a qualified Relationship Coach and Couples Counsellor I am passionate about helping couples to put the magic back into their relationship. I have also trained with Resolution as a Family Consultant, which means that I can work alongside family lawyers to help individuals, couples and families through the emotional trauma of separation and divorce.

Relationship Issues and Family Issues and can lead to affairs and betrayals, separation and divorce. They are often the result of you trying to battle your way through balancing a stressful working week with the desire for a stable, happy home life. All these things can lead individuals, couples and families to need a little extra help, perhaps counselling or just an independent professional, who is not emotionally involved to facilitate a discussion.

Life is constantly full of unexpected challenges and you will develop your own way of dealing with what is thrown at you. But sometimes you might feel alone, perhaps experience depression and/or feelings of Anxiety (General Anxiety Disorder) maybe feel unsure how to cope with your feelings. You might even experience symptoms of Panic Disorder - like when your heart beats faster, you feel faint and breathless - but this is generally just our brains playing tricks on us, and with the right help those symptoms can disappear as quickly as they came.

Experiencing emotional events can lead you to have concerns about trust, experience feelings of depression, anger, frustration, panic, phobias, low self confidence, low self esteem and feeling sad, which in turn affect many areas of your life.

Bereavement, the loss of a family member, partner or friend can have a huge impact on your emotional well being - it can be difficult to talk about your feelings with those close to you, but having someone to talk to who is not emotionally involved can be extremely helpful.

The trauma of experiencing physical, sexual or emotional abuse is hard to deal with when it's happening but it can also stay with you for years, talking though those feelings with a professional can be beneficial and help the healing process.

Sometimes it can feel as though no one understands your problems and you don't know who to turn to.

But that is what I'm here for, I offer a quiet, confidential, accepting space, where there are no judgements. I will listen to what you're saying, I will ask questions and be curious with you in relation to your beliefs about yourself, your relationships and the events you have experienced. I will show you empathy and understanding; there will be no assumptions or opinions. My job is to help people just like you to come to terms with what is happening in your life, to understand your own emotions and the affect that those emotions can have on your relationships.

Together we can explore the issues and concerns that you want to work with; which then gives you the opportunity to find your own internal resources and be able to make the right decisions or changes for you. My job is to help get you from where you are now to where you want to be in the future.

When working with a client I like to:

• help them to make the changes they want to make
• Know what's important to them
• Be curious about what makes them tick
• Step into their world

The 'Plus' in my practice name refers to the other services that I offer in the form of coaching and facilitation. I enjoy working 1:1 with individuals and also facilitating small groups to enable people to:

• Work, learn and live at their best
• Achieve success without stress
• Unravel what is holding them back
• Gain clarity, focus and direction
• Understand themselves and others
• Take their next best step with confidence

I offer bespoke family packages to families who need a little help to re-ignite their communication channels and promote family harmony. If you are struggling to engage with ’troubled teens’, a family group session is a great way to enable all members to feel listened to and truly heard.

Please give me a call (or send a text) 0795 8216 533 or you can email me lesley@lesleydowns.co.uk or lesley@seabreezecounsellingplus.co.uk

£180 per 90 minute individual Coaching/Counselling session.

£180 per 90 minute Couples Relationship Coaching/Counselling.

Bespoke family and group sessions are individually priced

Recent testimonials:

"I now completely understand the reasons for the relationship becoming so fragile.

"I would like to thank you for the work you did in getting us back on a stable platform. This has enabled us, (with the tools provided) to view our relationship in an entirely new way."

"I now understand so deeply the reasons for the deterioration in our marriage over the years."

I first went to see Lesley as I felt my life was in chaos. My parents had both recently passed away and the walls had completely closed in on me. Despite having a wonderful partner and a lovely place to live, happiness eluded me. I had seen a couple of counsellors over the years but still felt I had not dealt with many of my issues; I felt I was carrying a knapsack on my back full of rocks. I determined to find a counsellor and to commit to the process until there was no stone left unturned. Lesley is an amazing listener, a highly skilled counsellor and immediately put me completely at ease. Lesley helped me to identify those rocks, to understand them and to finally deal with them all. Sometimes we talked about nice things, sometimes about more difficult things; and at each and every session I learned and developed new awareness and perspective. I have learned so much from the experience and I would encourage anyone who is finding any aspect of their life a challenge to see Lesley. I cannot thank Lesley enough for here amazing insights, care and understanding; I feel happier now than I have ever felt in my entire life.

"Lesley created an environment that allowed members of our family to feel comfortable enough to share their personal opinions for the first time in decades; and with her help and guidance, we were able to identify deep-rooted issues clearly for the first time and focus on repairing them. Our time with her was a real eye-opener, and the experience has helped us no end."

• Couples Relationship Coaching/Counselling sessions are 90 minutes in duration.
• Individual Relationship Coaching/Counselling sessions are 90 minutes in duration.
• Bespoke family and group sessions are flexible in duration and individually priced.
  
  If you would like more details or a friendly informal chat, please call me on 0795 8216 533 (If you leave a message I will aim to get back to you within a few hours).
  Alternatively email lesley@lesleydowns.co.uk