Gerry Hall
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
What is Counselling?
Counselling is an opportunity to talk through issues which may be troubling you. Being able to share what you are going through can be of great benefit and gives you the chance to look at the way forward and see perhaps what changes may need to be made. There are times when life can feel overwhelming and it helps to work things through with a counsellor. Counselling is not about giving advice- it is to help empower you to see what could be needed in your life. Confidentiality is vital and the counselling space enables you to speak freely regarding what is on your mind. Confidentiality would be discussed in more detail when we speak together.
What can you expect from a counselling session
Firstly before we start counselling, I will speak with you on the telephone or Microsoft teams to complete an assessment. This is free of charge and I will ask you about the issues which has led you to contact me. I will then explain the counselling process and talk to you about how we can work together. I work as a person centred counsellor and this means that us looking together to see what is going to work for you, helping you to look at what is going on for you.
Sessions are normally 50 minutes to an hour.
What is Eye movement desensitisation and Re-processing- EMDR
EMDR is very effective in treating trauma. When a person experiences a traumatic event, the brain normally deals with it by naturally processing it and the event is naturally stored in the memory. There are times when the traumatic event becomes too overwhelming and the brain is unable to process it which means the experience becomes frozen and this means the person experiences flashbacks- i.e. the experience feels like it is very much in the here and now rather than being a past event. Flashbacks feel very real and can be traumatic.
EMDR helps with frozen events/flashbacks by using the brains natural healing ability to help move the memories on and process them. The client is fully aware of what is going on and remains in control. If you would like more information regarding this way of working, please let me know and I can provide a more comprehensive guide.
About me
I have over 19 years experience of counselling and 13 years experience of working using EMDR (eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing). EMDR is very effective when working with trauma.
I have worked with individuals over 18 in the voluntary sector, charities, NHS settings and also as part of a Employee Assisted programme via the NHS.
My training has been in the person centred counselling approach however I have also completed a diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, have training in Transactional Analysis and Counselling for Depression.
Training, qualifications & experience
BACP accredited since 2009
Foundation course in Counselling 2001
Diploma in Psychotherapy and Hypnosis 2004
Advanced diploma in Counselling 2006
Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy 2009
Counselling for Depression course 2011
EMDR parts 1,2 and 3 completed in 2012
Member organisations
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.
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
£50.00 per session
Free initial telephone or online session
Additional information
From April 2024, my fees will be £50 per session. Assessments are free and will be done over the telephone where I will go through the counselling process, confidentiality and answer any questions you may have.
Sessions are approximately an hour.
When I work
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Appointments are available Mondays to Thursday via Zoom, Skype or telephone. Please note I do not offer appointments on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays
Further information
I am mostly working from home however in person sessions can be arranged.
