Ellie Bradley

Hello, my name is Ellie, welcome to my profile. It can be a bit scary can’t it, scrolling through all these faces and working out who to click on. You’ve made it here so let me tell you a bit more about me and what I offer.

I’ve been working as a counsellor for a number of years, and I believe sharing your story can be one of the bravest things someone can do. For many people, talking about themselves can be really hard. I understand that, so I aim to create a safe and welcoming space for you to open up and bring whatever it is that’s troubling you. People often ask me, “what kind of counselling do you do”, the simplest answer to this is, “whatever it is you need to bring”. For some, this could mean that you’re struggling with feeling anxious and it’s stopping you from living your life in the way you want. It might mean something has happened that has left you feeling lost and unsure of the world. Perhaps you are navigating the death of someone very special to you or the breakdown of a relationship. For others this could be knowing there’s something not quite right but not knowing exactly what or why. Does this sound like you? If it does, then I will be there to help you explore your thoughts and feelings.

The next question I often get is, “but what do you actually do in counselling”. I find this one can be trickier to explain. I like to use an analogy to help people who have never had counselling to understand. Have you ever had a knot in something that looks like it’s so tight you’ll never get it out? Or there’s so many knots you don’t know where to start because pulling one bit makes another knot tighter? This… can be what the start of therapy looks like. Potentially overwhelming, maybe a big mess or something you just do not want to deal with, so you’d rather hide it away in a cupboard hoping to forget. What we would do is look at the knots together. We then piece together a plan for where to start and, if there’s many knots, which one can we can free up first. Eventually the knots or feelings will begin to seem less messy. We will work together to find a solution. For some knots, perhaps there’s no easy way to undo them, and so it’s about learning how to live with them. My aim is to support you to reach a point where untangling these knots becomes something you can do on your own or with support of those around you. And for the knots that might not budge, helping you to accept their presence. There might be times where you get frustrated, you might even want to walk away because it feels difficult… these feelings are ok and they are normal. I will be here to remind you of that and offer you safety and kindness as you carry on.

Each session is weekly and lasts 50minutes.

I offer a free 20 minute consultation session which can be by video call or over the phone.  This is an important part for us both to understand what is bringing you to counselling, what you want to get out of it and how I might be able to support you. This is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions you might have for me. There is no obligation from this consultation to continue on to book sessions but if you decide you would like to we can discuss availabilty. 

The process of counselling can be difficult at times but it has the potential to be transformative. It is important that you have the right person with you along for the ride. Maybe that person isn’t me, and that’s ok, but if I might be then reach out. Send me an email or message, I’d love to hear from you.