Gurvinder Dhesi

What if you could live a life that is enjoyable, contented and fulfilled? What if you could achieve your full potential? What if you do not have to suffer undue distressing symptoms, even when painful things happen to you? As a result of training, work and life experiences, I believe you can.  

We will work collaboratively to identify the sources of your emotional difficulties. I will help you gain deeper insight into your struggle and get to the root of the problem. I offer short- and long-term counselling and psychotherapy from my private practice in Caversham, Reading, Berkshire RG4, both in person and online. My practice is easily accessible by car from Slough, Maidenhead, Windsor, and West London via the A404(M), and from Newbury via the M4, or by train from Reading Station.      

Initially, I trained as an Integrative Psychotherapist, combining carefully selected complementary therapeutic approaches and interventions to adapt to your needs. I have further trained as an ISTDP therapist (Intensive Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy), an emotionally-focused process based on the attachment framework. ISTDP can help you to rapidly understand the source of the symptoms that cause you distress or dissatisfaction; symptoms you may have unconsciously adopted as ways of coping.  

I am a member of the Black and Asian Therapy Network (BAATN) and will work with you through the lens of your cultural experience. I offer therapy in English and Punjabi. I am committed to providing sessions in a safe, confidential and non-judgemental space. 

I am qualified and experienced in working with clients who are neuro-diverse to help them identify and manage the emotional repercussions of living with neurodiversity in a linear world; this includes Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). 

I am a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). 

I have over 15 years of experience working in NHS IAPT counselling and psychotherapy services, as well as in various therapeutic community-based settings. 

I am experienced in helping people who have difficulties with: 

Addiction; Anger; Anxiety, Stress and Panic Attacks; Bereavement and Loss; Depression; Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence involving Trauma-Focused Therapy; and Relationship Problems. Please see below for more details. 

About my counselling and psychotherapy

I offer evidence-based psychological therapy which is collaborative, respectful and tailored to you. My aim is to help you understand yourselves and to gain insight through self-knowledge and lived experience. My hope is that you get to know and accept who you truly are and, in the process, find meaning in life and overcome its difficulties. By gaining insight, you can take charge of your life and make informed choices.

The way I work

I am trained as an integrative counsellor and combine approaches to psychotherapy based on my clients' presenting concerns and needs. I take the view that there is no single approach that can treat all people in all situations, as each individual’s counselling is specific to their individual needs and personal circumstances. I see individuals on a weekly basis. It's sometimes possible, however, to arrange a one-off single session, or more intensive blocks of sessions, which can be very effective during a crisis.

Area of Work
I am experienced in helping people who have difficulties with: Addiction; Anger; Anxiety, Stress and Panic Attacks; Bereavement and Loss; Depression; Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence involving Trauma-focused Therapy; Relationship Problems. I explain more about each of these below.

Addiction
Frequently indulging in something that feels good at the time, only to cause other problems, is a vicious cycle that can be hard to break. It could be drugs, drinking, sex, anxiety, and the list goes on. Working together, we will explore and identify the triggers that lead to the addictive behaviour and find new ways to break the vicious cycle you are in by making alternative choices to achieve positive change.

Anger
Are you experiencing feelings of rage that feel impossible to contain, leading to explosive outbursts, breaking things, becoming violent, arguing with the people around you, losing your temper quickly, and lashing out physically or verbally? We can work together to identify the triggers of your anger and find different ways for you to respond to and express your emotions appropriately. By learning methods to manage your anger, you can use it constructively to motivate yourself or solve problems.

Anxiety, Stress, & Panic Attacks
Though these issues can affect different people in different ways, I have put them together under the same umbrella as they can all be debilitating and overwhelming in a similar way, causing difficulty with functioning on a day-to-day basis; you may find yourself avoiding certain social situations and other people, or put off carrying out necessary daily tasks and activities. Recognising the negative effect anxiety, stress, and panic attacks have on your life, and understanding that this is not OK, is an important first step. Counselling and psychotherapy can help, as through working together, we will understand the difficulties you're experiencing and identify any underlying issues that may be causing your anxiety, stress, or panic attacks. Once your personal stress triggers are identified, we will find new ways of coping, thereby reducing their occurrence.

Bereavement & Loss
This could be grief following the death of loved ones, your own serious illness, or the loss of something or someone. Through counselling, I can help you understand your mourning process, explore issues that could prevent you from moving on, resolve any remaining conflicts, and aid you in adjusting to a new sense of self.

Depression
If you're feeling deeply unmotivated and disconnected, unable to engage in life, or in a low mood that feels inescapable no matter what you do or try, constantly tearful and worried, having problems with concentration, irritable and intolerant of others, or indecisive, then you may be experiencing depression. Psychotherapy can help you move forward.

Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence
I have many years of experience working as a front-line practitioner with women and girls affected by domestic and sexual violence. I aim to provide trauma-focused therapy, creating a therapeutic process that is reparation in nature, and building trust through transparency within the client/therapist relationship. I work at my client’s pace to create a safe environment where the presenting trauma can be explored. I will work collaboratively with you in order to restore the power and control that the abuse took away and to empower you to make your own informed life choices and not to be defined by the abuse.

Relationship Problems
Intimate relationships are the source of great highs and sometimes unbearable lows, whether with your family, partner, or friends. You may also find work colleagues difficult or struggle to adapt to different social situations while maintaining a true sense of 'me'. We can explore and understand the emotional dynamic that upsets the relationships most important to us.

Group Therapy

I offer 2 different kinds of group therapy: psychoanalytic-based and CBT-based. I explain more about each below.

Psychoanalytic Based Group Therapy

“There is nothing inhuman, evil, or irrational which does not give some comfort, provided it is shared by a group.” - Erich Fromm

Psychoanalytic-based group therapy is a useful way for people who share a common problem to support and advise one another. 
While a group may seem a bit intimidating at first, I have found from running therapeutic groups that once people overcome this worry, they really benefit from meeting and sharing with others in the group. It can help you realise you’re not alone in your experiences.
The group will look at how the past is relevant to the present, and I will guide you through this process. This type of therapy is concerned with how things are here and now. It is not possible to prevent pain and trouble in the future, but we can build emotional and mental resilience to better cope with life's problems and frustrations.

CBT Based on Group Therapy

“Men are disturbed not by things, but by the view which they take of them.” – Epictetus

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy that examines how our thoughts and feelings affect our behaviour. CBT is based on the idea that your thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and actions are interconnected, and that negative thoughts and feelings can trap you in a vicious cycle of behaviour. It aims to help you break this cycle by breaking down overwhelming problems into smaller parts and showing you how to change these negative patterns to improve how you feel.
Unlike some other talking therapies, CBT focuses on your current problems rather than issues from your past. It looks for practical ways to improve your state of mind each day.

Please visit my website to find out more about group therapy.

Personal approach

I work integratively and creatively, using existing traditional theoretical frameworks within the psychodynamic, humanistic, and behavioural schools of thought. It’s not easy to convey meaningful information about talking therapy or myself as a therapist on a website. Research consistently shows it's the client/therapist relationship that is all-important, more than the approach used. Each person and each individual session is unique, so how I work is determined by the difficulties being experienced at that time and the hoped-for outcome. My approach focuses on the interaction between the two people in the therapy room.

Individual and Couples Counselling & Psychotherapy

Individual sessions cost £65-£85 and last 50 minutes. The couples therapy sessional rate is £165 for 90 minutes. I also offer concessional fees based on circumstances. Fees are payable by card transfers before each session and are non-refundable. Fees are reviewed each year, and I will inform you well in advance of changes. I charge for missed or cancelled sessions outside the agreed 48-hour notice period unless an alternative time within that calendar week is agreed.

Psychoanalytic-based Group Therapy

Sessions last for 60 minutes and take place every week at the same time and place. The work is open-ended, and the group's duration will be determined by the members. Each session costs £45 per person.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy-based Group Therapy

Each session lasts 2 hours and costs £45 per person. CBT-based group therapy takes place over 12 sessions, with group members committing to attend all sessions.

Fees Individual Sessions £65.00-£85.00 (50 minutes)

Couples Therapy £165.00 (90 minutes)