Adele MacCallum

Hello! Are you looking for support to manage anxiety that feels consuming and overwhelming? Do you notice that your thoughts are 'busy' and spiral, often jumping to the worst-case scenario? Perhaps change and uncertainty feels difficult. In search of a friendly and down-to-earth therapist who understands anxiety, both from a personal and professional perspective?

I'm Adele, an experienced Cognitive Behavioural Therapist who has a special interest in working with anxiety. Whilst I am a CBT Therapist, I take a more integrative approach to therapy, drawing upon different counselling modalities to best suit your individual needs, including using an 'inner child' approach. Many of our difficulties are rooted in our earlier childhood experiences and sometimes it can be extremely difficult to hear and listen to our rational, logical adult self when we are in trigger situations, instead we can be taken straight back to childhood memories/situations that feel like they are really playing out in the 'here and now'. We then think, feel & 're-act' as we did when we were children (without even realising it). In connecting with those younger parts of ourselves, we can process unresolved difficulties and begin to heal them which allows us to start living the lives we deserve. I believe that a blended approach of CBT and other modalities meets individual needs.

I appreciate the courage it takes to ask for help therefore, I will meet you with the kindness & compassion I'd hope to be met with. I will offer a warm and empathetic space for you to explore your difficulties at a pace that feels helpful for you, as well as offering simple, practical and helpful tools and techniques which will enable you to help yourself during times of anxiety and low mood.  I offer shorter and longer term therapy, as your needs require. We can discuss this together. 

'What if's....'

Whether you are anxious about something specific or, you worry excessively about 'everything and anything', or indeed, the worst part for you is when worry exists with no obvious reason: I do get it! This can feel extremely distressing and exhausting. You may feel anxious when you are not worrying as worry has become such a familiar part of your life. Is, "what if..." a familiar thought?  Do you find that when you are not worrying, you sometimes look for something to worry about? Constant anxiety can make it difficult to enjoy what is happening in the 'here and now' and can lead to feelings of low mood, alongside low self-esteem.  

How I can help?

Through having a wealth of experience from working with many clients who experience anxiety, I have grown to appreciate how important it is for a therapist to have specific skills, experience and genuine compassion & understanding when supporting clients who struggle with severe anxiety.  I consider myself to be empathetic and easy to talk to and I do understand that sometimes, we can feel embarrassed by thoughts or worries that we have but really - there is no need to feel embarrassed. It can sometimes feel like others don't understand how relentless and limiting anxiety can be. I have a special interest in working with clients who experience anxiety, especially Generalised Anxiety Disorder (where worry is excessive, disproportionate and present most, or all of the time and is about lots of different things and the unknown or uncertainty almost feels intolerable).  I will offer an empathetic listening ear to enable you to talk through your worries/feelings, helping you to start doing the things that you have perhaps avoided but you feel are so important to you or, supporting you in perhaps not 'over-compensating' quite as much, helping you to challenge anxious thoughts so that you feel more in control, rather than filled with fear or self-doubt, to understand and manage the intense physical symptoms that anxiety can cause and to reclaim confidence and happiness to allow you to live the fulfilling life you deserve.

I do understand how debilitating anxiety can feel therefore, having a 'tool-kit' to help you to manage anxiety for yourself, is both extremely helpful and empowering. I can help you to explore and make sense of the anxiety you experience as often, when we can understand why things are happening, it feels less confusing. I will introduce you to suitable tools and techniques to meet your needs, enabling you to be able to help yourself during times of anxiety and to help reduce and prevent overwhelm (becoming your own therapist). Amidst fear and anxiety, you may feel you have lost your way, somewhat. If you are feeling a little lost, I can also support you in (re) discovering 'you', allowing you to move forward in a more meaningful direction.

Please kindly note, If making an email enquiry, please have a check in your spam/junk folder as sometimes my email replies find their way in there.

I offer 'in-person' sessions and also offer online and telephone sessions (UK-wide). This allows you to have sessions in the comfort of your own surroundings which can often feel a lot less daunting and more familiar, for many. 

CBT is a talking and 'doing' therapy that helps you to become aware of how your thoughts and behaviours impact the way that you feel. By making small changes to how we think and respond, can make a big difference to how we feel. CBT is not a long-term therapy with sessions typically lasting between 6-20 sessions but this can be increased depending on your individual needs. NICE Guidelines (clinical guidelines) recommends CBT as a treatment for anxiety disorders. For some people, they can notice some helpful changes in as little as 6-8 sessions. I will support you in working towards achieving your life-goals, which we can explore together. I truly value us working side-by-side. Together, we will gently get to the root of the problem and we will explore helpful ways of thinking and coping to allow you to start enjoying life, once more.

I will be led by you regarding working on the areas you wish to focus on, at a pace that feels helpful for you. I take time to do a careful and thorough assessment of your difficulties, to ensure we create a treatment plan that is going to be helpful and best suit your needs. You will always be at the centre of this process as whilst I am the expert in CBT, you are the expert in you. I will listen to you empathetically and carefully, allowing you to explore overwhelming thoughts and feelings in a supportive and safe space. I will also help you to understand why your body and brain responds in the way that it does (provide psychoeducation) which, in my experience, when you can understand and rationalise why you experience the thoughts, feelings and physical sensations that you do, it can often take the 'sting' out of worrying about what you are experiencing. 

Next steps...

I welcome you to get in touch to ask questions that you may feel will help you to decide if I feel like the right 'fit' for you as I value how important it is for you to work with the right therapist. I offer in-person and online sessions. Please feel welcome to get in touch by phone, email or send an enquiry message. All messages are treated confidentially and I will respond within 24 hours. Please kindly check spam folder as sometimes replies find their way in there :-).

FAQ 

Q. I have had CBT in the past and didn't find it helpful.

A. Sometimes, when people are referred for CBT, it can be very time-limited. My approach is very different as I have time to work with you. We can take the time we need, and feels workable for you, to explore your difficulties. I very much see you as individual, with your own unique needs and I embrace this in our time together.

Q. I am not sure about trying online sessions.

A. How will you know unless you give it a go? Many people say that once they start talking, they don't see a screen and feel like they are in a room with me. It can be far more convenient for those under time pressure to pop onto a device than to make their way to a building. It also allows you to feel comfortable in your own home/car/surroundings which can be especially helpful when you may feel emotional. I encourage you to give it a go and see how it feels.

Q. I want to start sessions but it feels a bit daunting.

A. Nothing is scarier than staying stuck. How will you know unless you give it a go? We take everything at your own pace and I will be led by you. You are here reading this which is the first step, the second one is making contact and asking any questions to help get a feel for what your next steps may be.

I welcome your enquiry. If you are waiting on an email response from me, please kindly check spam or junk mail folder as sometimes replies have a habit of finding their way in there :-). 

£60 per online session (lasting 50-55 minutes).

£65 per face -to -face session (lasting 50-55 mins which covers room hire costs)

I offer a few fortnightly session spaces.

What will you get from your counselling sessions?

You will be met with warmth and understanding and offered a safe space to  explore your difficulties. As CBT is not a long-term therapy, my aim would be to support you in feeling better as quickly as we can. After a thorough assessment, I will support you in deciding the areas of difficulty you wish to focus on and together, we will work on providing you with tools and techniques to help reduce and manage anxiety. This means you can become your own therapist, once our time together ends; whenever this feels right for you.  We will regularly review our work together to ensure you are getting the most from your sessions. 

Have any questions to ask me? Feel welcome to reach out by telephone or email and I will happily help. Please kindly check junk mail or spam folder as sometimes email replies have a habit of ending up in there! :-)

Next steps?

I offer a free fifteen minute telephone/zoom consultation to allow you to ask any questions and to help you to decide if I am the right counsellor for you.  Alternatively, if you feel more comfortable talking on the telephone or simply sending me an email, please feel welcome to do so. 

If you wish to book a session with me, we would have a first session to get to know each other and to gently explore any difficulties you would like to work on. If you are happy to continue with your sessions, we would normally have weekly sessions (clients tend to have between 6 and 20 sessions but this is variable). I am always keen to do what works for you.

I offer  Face-to Face and Remote therapy sessions (online or telephone). We can discuss what works best for you.

With best wishes,

Adele