Susan Dobson

Welcome, and thank you for viewing my profile.

Making the decision to come to counselling can be a difficult one, there may be a particular situation or set of circumstances that leave you feeling in need of support, you may be struggling with anxiety, depression or generally feel as if you're less able to cope than you normally would. Or you may feel as if you're at a cross roads in your life, dealing with significant changes or simply feeling a bit lost in the busyness of life and need some space for yourself to identify what comes next.

Having a trained professional who will carefully listen to you, offer you acceptance and empathy can make all the difference to how you see yourself and your circumstances.

I have over 25 years experience in supporting people with a wide variety of life events including workplace issues, bullying, bereavement, relationship breakdowns, affairs and betrayals, domestic abuse, trauma and childhood abuse. As such I am able to offer you the space and time to explore issues of concern to you and to reach your own decision about what, if anything, might need to change. You may find that a couple of sessions gives you the capacity to find a way forward in your life, or you may be looking for longer term support. I am able to work at your pace and can negotiate session timings and length to best meet your needs.

About me:-

I am a counsellor/psychotherapist offering individual counselling to adults and young people.  While my core training is in person centred therapy, I have experience in supporting people in a variety of settings and draw on a range of approaches to support you including mindfulness, motivational interviewing and CBT. My hope is that our work together will support you in identifying your strengths and potential for growth, that you'll become more resilient and be able to live with a sense of purpose.

I have worked in a variety of settings including short term work for Employee Assistance Programmes, offering student counselling with local further education colleges, and longer term therapy. I have extensive experience of working with young people in the public and voluntary sectors, I was the Service Manager of the Childline Helpline Service for 9 years, leaving that post 5 years ago to open my private therapy practice.

I am an experienced trainer and group facilitator, and offer training to counsellors and therapists across a range of issues on a freelance basis.

What to expect:-

I work from a comfortable, private office within my home. In our first session I will explain fully the kind of therapy I can offer and the confidential nature of my service. I would also hope to explore what has brought you to therapy and to talk through the support I can offer with the issues that are concerning you. There's some admin to complete too, to make sure you understand the way I work, my confidentiality policy and how I keep records of our sessions.

Sessions:-

Sessions are usually an hour long and many people chose to come for weekly appointments. Many people find that 5 or 6 sessions is enough to help them find a way through their circumstances. You might chose to come less frequently, opt for longer sessions, decide a set number of sessions or want to work on a longer term basis. All of those options are open to you in deciding to work with me.

If you have any questions or concerns about coming to counselling, or would like to explore whether you'd like to book an appointment, please don't hesitate to contact me by phone or email. Alternately you might want to visit my website which contains further information.

Individuals
Face to face counselling : £50.00 per hour
Telephone counselling : £50.00 per hour

Online counselling : £50.00 per hour

Couples

Face to face counselling : £75 per hour