Amanda Jeffries
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
I am an experienced therapist offering short or long term counselling and psychotherapy. I deal with issues including depression, loss or bereavement, anger, anxiety, relationship and mental health difficulties, as well as exploring who you are and life directions.
Practical Arrangements
I see people once or twice a week for 50-minute sessions at a regular time each week. Sessions can be either in person or online, or a mixture of both. In-person work can be in a consulting room in central Oxford, or take the form of walking and talking in a quiet Oxford park.
My approach
My core training and approach is psychodynamic therapy. This means trying to get below the surface of what is troubling you - whether that is depression, anxiety, low self esteem, relationship difficulties, loss, or some other issue. Present distress is often connected with ways of thinking, feeling and behaving that got set up in the past - maybe as a result of trauma or difficult experiences - but which are no longer serving you well. Understanding the past, and unconscious motivations, can help shed light on how to go forward.
Every person is unique and every therapy is unique. My aim is to give you space to speak, and to listen and offer you insights, so that together we can help you understand yourself better. Often therapy will involve exploring and working through difficult feelings. Or you may be at a time in your life when you are exploring questions of meaning, and your sense of yourself. Sometimes we might also discuss together practical ways of going forward, or think about how your lifestyle might change to support your wellbeing. I aim to offer you the right balance of support and challenge, which might be different at different times. We will keep reviewing how the therapy is going, and I will encourage you to share your thoughts and feelings as openly and honestly as possible as we go along together.
Our first meeting
It is always good to meet in person for our first meeting if at all possible.
In this fifty-minute session I will start by asking you what brings you to seek therapy, and answer any questions you may have. I may ask you some questions as we go along, but mainly I will be listening in order to understand what is going on for you. Towards the end I will offer some thoughts about this and about how we might go forward if you decide you would like to meet again. At this stage you might decide either to contract for a limited number of sessions, with the option to extend, or to carry on meeting on an ongoing basis. Or you may prefer to go away and think about what you would like to do.
If we decide to go forward with therapy I will send you a leaflet with more details of how I work, practicalities, and my terms and conditions, and I will ask you to confirm you agree with these. I will also ask you to fill in a short form giving personal details. We will normally meet either until we reach an agreed finishing date, or until you feel you are ready to end. In the second case we will think together about your reasons for wanting to end, and then normally agree on an ending period in order to bring the therapy to a satisfactory conclusion.
The most important aspect of therapy is feeling comfortable with your therapist; the first meeting is an opportunity to get a sense of whether we might be a good fit.
Please do contact me if you would like to discuss or clarify anything, either by email or in a short phone call, before setting up a meeting.
Training, qualifications & experience
I have a Masters degree in Psychodynamic Practice from Oxford University. I have also done post-qualification Jungian training with the GAP. I was until recently Chair of the Oxford Psychotherapy Society. I have worked as a therapist in different NHS settings, including Psychological Services, as well as in a large workplace organisation. My background is in languages and I have a wide professional experience of working with people from diverse cultures and religious backgrounds. I also have experience of working with people with mental health issues and have a good understanding of the different treatment options on offer.
I have a wide experience of working with people from diverse cultures and religious backgrounds. I can offer therapy in Spanish, and also have a good understanding of French and Italian.
Member organisations
school Registered / Accredited
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 UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) is a leading professional body for the education, training and regulation of psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors. Its register is accredited by the government's Professional Standards Authority.
As part of its commitment to protect the public, it works to improve access to psychotherapy, to support and disseminate research, to improve standards and to respond effectively to complaints against its members.
UKCP standards cover the range of different psychotherapies. Registration is obtained by training or accrediting with one of its member organisations, or by holding a European Certificate in Psychotherapy. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Other areas of counselling I deal with
I am happy working with spiritual dimensions of therapy if this is an approach you would like to take.
Therapies offered
Fees
£54.00 - £64.00
Concessions offered for
Additional information
My current fee is £54 for online and park sessions. I may be able to offer a concessionary place if you are unwaged or on a low income - please mention in your enquiry if you would like to apply for one of these. The fee for consulting room sessions is £64.
When I work
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Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Last appointment 17.45
Further information
Please visit my website www.amandajeffries.co.uk for more details of how I work, or phone 07570 938 779. My phone is often on voicemail when I am in session, so please leave a message and I will get back to you.
