Claire Martin
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This professional is currently not accepting new clients and may not respond to general enquiries at this time.
This professional is currently not accepting new clients and may not respond to general enquiries at this time.
About me
Hi, I’m Claire and thank you for taking the time to view my profile. Ok, let me tell you the important stuff first, I am a qualified person-centred counsellor with CBT skills. I am also a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy which means I work safely and ethically and have your best interests at heart.
Person-centred counselling is a talking therapy which can help you explore, understand feelings, problems and difficulties in your life and can be really useful when you need to find a sense of direction or sort out a particular problem which may be emotionally distressing e.g.issues within your relationship. I am here to provide a non-judgemental, supportive and accepting environment where you will be able to work out what is best for you and improve the quality of your life and well-being.
I am also trained in cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) which has been specifically designed to help you understand how your thoughts can affect your emotions and behaviours. CBT can have life changing benefits to your mental and physical health and I can teach you techniques which help you to identify and change unhelpful thought and behaviour patterns. CBT can help you manage many mental health conditions including; anxiety, depression, low-self-esteem, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorders and phobias.
I have used my person-centred and Cognitive behavioural therapy skills at several agencies in the Blackpool and Fylde area and have experience of dealing with a wide range of issues including:
- Abuse
- Anxiety
- Bereavement
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Grief and loss
- Low-self-esteem
- OCD
- Phobias
- Relationship issues
- Self-harm
- Social Anxiety
- Stress
- Sexual abuse (including historical)
- Transgender issues
- Trichotillomania
Training, qualifications & experience
CPCAB Advanced Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapeutic Skills and Theory
SCQF CBT toolkit –Intro into CBT skills
CPCAB Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling
CPCAB Level 3 in Counselling Skills
CPCAB Level 3 in Counselling Theory
CPCAB Level 2 in Counselling Skills
CPCAB Intro into Counselling Skills
I have recently completed an ASIST training course which enables me to gives additional support to those who express suicidal tendencies.
Experience
I have worked as a volunteer counsellor at various agencies in the Blackpool area, namely MOSAC, helping mother's of sexually abused children, Age UK bereavement counselling service and North West Therapy dealing with mild to moderate mental health problems. I have also worked for Lancashire Women's Centre Therapeutic Services team delivering counselling to male and female patients referred through Minds Matter (NHS) in Lancaster and Preston.
Member organisations
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
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
Therapies offered
Photos & videos
Fees
£18.00 - £55.00
Free initial in-person or telephone session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Free half hour initial consultation.
Adults £30 per 50 minute session.
Unemployed, OAPs and Students £18/£20 per 50 minute session.
Couples therapy £55 per 50 minute session.
There are a limited amount of lower priced counselling sessions available if you are particularly short of money but desperately in need of help. Please do not allow lack of money to prevent you from contacting me.
When I work
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Monday to Friday from 10am to 5.15pm. I also offer weekend appointments on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Further information
If you think I can help please do not hesitate to contact me by phone, email or text. Finding the right counsellor for you is important therefore I offer a free 30 minute session so that you can meet me in person and get an idea of how we might work together.
Here are a few testimonials kindly provided from clients I have worked with:
Depressed client: Having spent over 12 months completing weekly sessions with Claire I have found her support to be extremely helpful. I have suffered with depression for several years and Claire's patient and supportive approach has made a huge difference.
She is clearly a firm believer in the benefits of CBT and fully understands the theories of psychology but it is the practical application which she uses so well.
Claire has also shown that she is willing to gently challenge where appropriate and therefore has been instrumental in allowing me to move forward.
Down to earth and approachable and most of all an attentive listener, I have no hesitation in recommending Claire.
Bereaved client : "Thankyou so much for all the help you gave me. I still have problems from time to time but thanks to you I am able to put them into perspective. I'm finally enjoying life again."
Low self-esteem client: "Thankyou so so much for all you have done for me. I will never go back to thinking I am a second class citizen and that is down to you and the work we did."
CBT client: "you gave me the tools to change my negatives into positives, I've got 'me' back, thank you."
CBT client: "Claire has helped me immensely with learning to cope with anxiety and how to improve my self-esteem. She has a great sense of humour and created a really welcoming environment which made the whole process much less daunting. Thankyou so much for all your help!"
