Denise Sherrington

Hello.  How are you?’ 

All too often when asked we reply ‘fine, thank you’ because that is what people expect to hear, but what if things aren’t fine?  What if it hard to be honest about what is not fine because we don’t want to burden our friends and family?  What if we fear being judged or people not understanding?  Who can we be honest with then?   If you want to talk about what’s not fine, I am here to offer a quiet, private, non-judgemental space to do just that. 

So what can counselling help you with?  Together, we can start to work through the difficult things that trouble you and don’t feel fine.  Perhaps you don’t feel heard or understood even by those who are supposed to know us best?  Perhaps you feel like you are not good enough or that nobody cares, even those who we hope know us best? This can leave us feeling anxious, stressed, scared and angry. 

Sometimes it is life’s transitions and changes that are difficult to deal with.  What is it like to be facing changes in your life and to feel overwhelmed and out of control?  Changes, even the good ones that we have  chosen to make, can be hard to deal with.  If our lives are hit by something unexpected, painful and frightening that we haven't chosen then the impact it has on us can be huge.  Often change means that we lose something.  That may be peace of mind or the feeling of comfort we derived from knowing where we are and what we are doing.  Sometimes we lose a connection with people, places and experiences we value an care about.  These changes and transitions could include leaving school or college or a job, moving away from family, getting married, divorced or having children, suffering a bereavement or any number of unexpected turns our lives can take along the way.  It is normal to grieve the loss of what went before but sometimes we can feel like we should only feel positive and able to pick ourselves up and move on.  Somehow, we are doing something wrong if we are sad, scared, anxious and overwhelmed by difficult feelings.  I can help you to face those changes and work out what it is that you need to move forward and feel in more in control again. 

I can offer short term counselling where we work to a specific goal or longer term and open ended counselling where we have more freedom to explore whatever you need to look at.  I can give you the space to look at what change means to you and what you need going forward so that you feel lighter and better able to face the future.  

So a little about me.  I am an integrative counsellor with experience of helping adults and young people aged 11 to 18 .  I have worked in an academic setting so I understand the pressures of studying and working in the educational sector.  I also have experience of working in a corporate environment and understand the unique challenges that brings too.  I also have an interest in supporting parents with children who have some kind neurodiversity – it can be difficult to know what to do for the best and it can be a hard and lonely journey if you feel unsupported and out of step with others who don’t face similar challenges.  Counselling can help you see what you want from life and give you the emotional tools to navigate changes and difficulties and challenges that have arisen along the way.  It can also help you to understand how your past relationships, especially those significant childhood relationships, can shape the way you relate to others later in life through an understanding of attachment theory.  Our current relationships so often reflect our past relationships in all sorts of ways.  

If you feel like it is time to talk about what is not fine, I would be pleased to hear from you.  We can start out by having an initial session, either face to face or online, where we discuss your needs and how counselling might work for you. Please email or text me and we can arrange a time for you to meet, and see if we can work together.  Thanks for reading. 

Parents with neuro-diverse children

£50 ph.