Caroline Verna

In-person, online and telephone counselling for adult individuals

Hello,

If you are here with me now, perhaps it's because you're finding it hard to cope. There might be a difficult event in your life and you're feeling overwhelmed or confused. You might feel isolated with no-one to talk to.  Or you just find it really hard to talk to family and friends.

I’m offering you the space to explore what might be causing you distress.

You will be met with empathy, genuineness and respect as we explore your issues together.  I believe we are all unique and have the resources within us to grow, develop and change.

For me, more important than any theory or technique is the therapeutic relationship we will build together and it is likely to be the most important factor in your growth and change.  Having a safe space, where you can face things honestly and openly without fear of judgement, can be a good foundation for change where you be able to make decisions and choices that are right for you.

Part of every counsellor's training is to take a good look at their own lives, examining themselves and their approach to life, sifting through their own patterns of behaviour and working out what is and isn't serving them well.  I hope that together we can do the same for you.

It has been my privilege to have worked with people from all walks of life, sometimes working through grief, loss and trauma, often suffering from low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and low mood, disordered eating and self-harm, but mostly with a sense that life could somehow be better if only they could find a way out of feeling stuck.

I am a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) which means I work within its professional ethical framework, where you can be assured that I have received high quality training and continue to develop my practice through Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and supervision.

I offer short and long-term counselling to adult individuals and work with a broad range of issues and concerns, including sexualised trauma.

I offer a 1 hour introductory session at a reduced cost of £30 which will help you decide if I am the right therapist for you.  As well as starting to learn more about what has brought you to therapy, we will use the time to decide how best to go forward together.  Important boundaries around confidentiality and appointments will also be discussed.

Could counselling change your life?

Client testimonials:

"Caroline accepted what I said without judging me"

"I no longer feel so terribly alone"

"Thank you for providing a professional and compassionate service"

Introductory session (1 hour) - £30

All fees are payable in advance by bank transfer

Is it the right time to start counselling?

Counselling is a two-way process in which you need to be ready to fully and actively engage in order for it to be helpful.   It is therefore very important to consider the following:

• Is this the right time for counselling?  What makes it right or important to you at this particular time?
• Do you have the support and resources needed to cope with any strong feelings and memories that might come to the surface?
• Counselling is likely to make you more aware of what feels uncomfortable or 'not right' and you may become less satisfied with aspects of your life that you may have been putting up with for good reasons.  It's therefore possible you might want to make changes that have longer term consequences or you may want to start taking responsibility for areas of your life that you have wanted to ignore, put off or deny

There will be times when your counsellor might suggest some reading or self-help, so will you be able to:

• Reflect and think about what you have explored in your sessions, between sessions?
• Think about what you want to focus on before you come into each session?