Debbie Cooley
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hello, my name is Debbie and I am humbled that you have chosen me to be a potential therapist to accompany you on your counselling journey.
I firstly would like to acknowledge that I appreciate how difficult it can be taking the first steps in finding a counsellor and engaging in therapy and I would like to put you at ease to know that I understand that and I am here to support you.
I have lived experience of many complex traumas and see myself as a survivor and a thriver - but it wasn't always that way! For many years I had a negative self view and lived from an internal script of not being good enough. I thought that somehow I must have been to blame for all that had "happened to me!". It took many hours of personal therapy to change this view of myself and now I am honoured to be able to do this for others who have experienced similar or the same.
I am an integrative psychotherapeutic counsellor specialising in trauma, bereavement and addiction. I work in a trauma informed way with the client always being at the heart of everything that happens within the sessions.
I am down-to-earth and easy speaking so you don't need to worry about how you speak and what you say.. I am also a human first and a therapist second.
I am warm and empathic and very nurturing in my approach. My supervisor recently used three word to describe me as "a teacher, a cheerleader and a safety blanket" and I am all those things and more...
I will support your inner child as you navigate the feelings and emotions that you may have dissociated from and found too painful to bear, I will help you to understand what happened to you and how you can heal, I will celebrate your journey of growth and help you to see yourself as everything you are instead of everything that others have made you believe, and lastly I will be there to support you when the sessions and the emotions become overwhelming and help you to process the pain.
Outside of my private practice I work in Rape and Sexual violence services as a counsellor. I also work a few days a week in Drugs & Alcohol rehabilitation and resettlement services as a key worker and therapeutic listener. Alongside this I have worked in Bereavement services within a hospice setting as a counsellor and also facilitated peer support groups for Bereavement by Suicide for a local charity.
If you feel that I am a good fit for what you are looking for in counsellor then please reach out and contact me.
I can offer telephone counselling, online via teams/zoom, or face-to-face in Gillingham, Kent.
Take gentle care of yourself and thank you for reading.
Training, qualifications & experience
- CPCAB Counselling Diploma Level 4
- Trauma Informed Counselling
- Bereavement Counselling
- Drug and Addiction Counselling
- Rape & Sexual Abuse Counselling
- Domestic Violence Counselling
- Suicide Bereavement Counselling
- Creative Interventions Therapy
- Sand Tray Therapy
- Holistic Therapy (Reiki & Crystals)
- Lived Experience
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
Fees
£60.00 per session
Free initial online session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Concessions are available for Students and Low-Income.
Initial session is for 30 minutes and will be held online or via telephone.
When I work
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Weekends appointments are sometimes also available, please contact to enquire.
