Amelie Lavan

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Counsellor and Supervisor (Registered MBACP)
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX2
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

About me

My name is Amelie Lavan and I am a qualified, experienced counsellor offering counselling to individuals and to children in school settings. I also offer supervision to other trained therapists. I have thirteen years counselling experience and a further four years experience as a voluntary counsellor with Cruse Bereavement Care. I was also a secondary school and university teacher for many years and have post graduate qualifications in education. I’m a qualified group and family constellations facilitator. For me, the goal of counselling is to help people reclaim or find for the first time a sense of peace and purpose in their lives; lives which currently feel ‘hi-jacked’ by anxiety, fear, depression, or loss of any kind. Our work together will explore your internal set up so that you can recognise what works well and what needs refiguring. We will find tools which will help liberate you from what keeps you stuck. My private practice is in Warley, West Yorkshire which is a few minutes drive from Halifax, Hebden Bridge or Huddersfield. We are also able to work effectively on line via Zoom or Skype.

What is counselling?
At times, all of us feel afraid, anxious, lost, depressed or frustrated. It’s our psyche’s way of telling us something important needs our attention. When we understand these feelings and find the courage to face them, we can then heal ourselves or make positive changes. It’s very hard to do this by ourselves because we’re too close to the problem so this is where counselling comes in. With me as your counsellor, we start a process together to help you discover what your present problem is trying to tell you. When we have clarity on the real nature of the problem, then we can work out strategies to deal with it. Why is this so hard to work out, you might ask? We have conscious and unconscious or hidden ways of behaving and responding to events, which are unique to us. This is a result of our life’s experiences, especially our early childhood ones and how we interpreted or made sense of them at the time. Some parts of us are healthy and respond appropriately to whatever is going on inside and outside ourselves. However, all of us have aspects which do not respond in appropriate ways. They come to the fore when we feel stressed or are experiencing difficult events. Inevitably, our relationship both to ourselves and to others is affected. Counselling is a process where we increase our awareness of our own patterns of behaviour and identify which ones are limiting us in some way. We start noticing things which we haven’t seen before, and start to see how they are holding us back. The more self aware we become of our patterns, the more we are able to assess which ones need to be challenged or changed in some way. We also need to acknowledge our healthy aspects and give them space so they can be nurtured. If you’re reading this website, this process has already begun. You are on the first step to changing your awareness so that you can have a better, more rewarding life.

How can counselling help me?
Counselling is a subtle process and is probably unlike anything else you’ve ever done. If you feel relaxed and safe enough, you will share things which you may not have shared with anyone else. The work can be demanding and challenging at times, but it is deeply rewarding and the benefits can be positively life changing. You will not be alone as you go on this inward journey. I will be with you as your counsellor. The work will be done in a confidential, empathic and respectful way. We will also go at a pace and to a depth which feels right for you now.
You may want to look at issues such as

- bereavement or loss of any kind
- depression
- anxiety
- panic attacks
- low self esteem
- anger and irritation
- relationship difficulties
- spiritual concerns
- stress
How long will it take?
Counselling just takes the time it takes and it’s hard to predict how long that might be for you. You may find that you only need three or four sessions and that this is enough to relieve your current concerns. Some people, though, recognise that their patterns are deep seated and have built up over a long period of time. These patterns can’t be challenged or changed quickly because our defence systems kick in. We need to go slowly and with great respect for the self who really just wants to keep you safe. In this case, we need to work for a longer period of time. Whatever you decide, our work together will aim to support changes you want to make so that you are able to manage better all the challenges that life brings.

Training, qualifications & experience

Post qualification, I have been counselling for thirteen years and in total, including voluntary work, I’ve been counselling for sixteen years. My training is in integrative counselling (Leeds University 2008-2011). I have a counselling certificate and a post-graduate diploma in integrative counselling (Psychotherapy and Counselling). I am a qualified family constellation facilitator. Before that I was in secondary and adult education, so I have a degree and other post graduate qualifications relevant to education and teaching.

For many years I was an accredited bereavement counsellor, supervisor and group facilitator with Cruse Bereavement Care. Cruse is a national bereavement charity.

I am a supervisor which means I offer supervision to other counsellors. All counsellors (in recognised counselling bodies in the U.K.) agree to be supervised as it is a mandatory requirement if we want to be accepted into a professional body. My supervisees come from a variety of counselling modalities and work settings.

I am a member of BACP (The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) and abide by their code of ethics. This code includes aspects of working such as confidentiality, working within my qualifications and experience and having regular supervision.

Member organisations

BACP
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP)

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

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

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.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy

Fees

£50.00 per session

Additional information

How much do you charge?

A one hour appointment usually costs £50.  The sessions are usually weekly to start with but can then shift to fortnightly or monthly. Internet and telephone sessions are available. Supervision costs £60 an hour.

When I work

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Morning
Afternoon
Evening
Night

Tuesday, Wednesday Thursday during the day.

Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX2

Type of session

In person
Online
Phone

Types of client

Adults

Supervision

In person
Online

I supervise qualified counsellors from a variety of counselling modalities who work in a variety of professional settings.

View supervision profile

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