Jessica Charles
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
There are times in life when things may become unbearable and taking the first step to reach out can be really tough. Whether you'd like day to day life to feel a little easier, or want to make sense of your struggles, we'll work together with what you bring to your sessions.
Hello, and welcome to my profile. My name is Jessica and I work as a therapist providing face to face psychotherapy from my therapy room in Penkridge, Staffordshire, with COVID-19 secure measures in place. I am also continuing to offer online sessions via zoom.
How psychotherapy can help
Psychotherapy aims to assist people to overcome the emotional barriers or psychological problems caused or triggered by, for example, traumas, relationship breakdown, stress, depression and anxiety.
“Therapy does not offer a magic formula, rather a way to unravel and heal our tangled wounds. A place where suffering is heard, even when there are no words. Somewhere you can grow and learn to thrive".
You may have spent a lifetime bottling up feelings inside, and learnt ways to survive, and cope the best you can. For some this may be through drinking too much alcohol, taking drugs, both recreational and pharmacological, eating too much or not enough, excessive exercise, and or self-harm. More simply put, we learn ways to numb and soothe the unspoken pain.
Traumatic or difficult experiences can impact the body, as well as the mind, in a profound way. For instance, in addition to feeling depressed, low or anxious, you may also feel disconnected from your body, ashamed of it or you may be experiencing physical symptoms, such as restlessness, insomnia, fatigue, or pain.
It can be incredibly difficult to deal with such troubling feelings on your own, and despite some people managing their problems with the help of friends and family, it is sometimes beyond the control of the individual to address those issues without professional help. Therapy enables clients to address their problems and make the life changes needed to overcome these problems and improve their health and well-being.
I believe we all have a story and at times it is really important for our story to be heard.
My approach
As a relational and developmental therapist, I integrate a variety of therapeutic approaches and help you make sense of how your present struggles have been influenced by your past experiences, including your very earliest ones & the meaning these hold for you. I work on the assumption that the body and mind are intrinsically connected, therefore should be treated as such in the context of therapeutic work.
A relational approach places the therapeutic relationship at the heart of personal growth and healing. This may mean exploring the dynamics that are occurring in the here and now within the therapeutic relationship in order to shed greater light on understanding the client’s relational dynamics and hence enable them to understand themselves more.
Getting in touch
I offer an assessment session so we can discuss the issues which have motivated you to search for a therapist. This is also an opportunity to decide if I'm the right therapist for you. If I feel I am not able to help I will always do my best to refer you on to a colleague. Sometimes clients may only require short term therapy; for others, the counselling /therapy process can take much longer. Either way is fine.
If I am unable to answer your call, please leave a message or send a text, and I will return your call as soon as possible. Please contact me by email if you feel more comfortable with this. I aim to respond to your enquiry within 24 hours on weekdays. I very much look forward to hearing from you.
Training, qualifications & experience
Training and Qualifications:
- Post Graduate Diploma Integrative Psychotherapy from the Sherwood Psychotherapy Training Institute in Nottingham.
- MSc Integrative Psychotherapy. This involved 4 years of in-depth study, clinical work and research.
- BSc Complementary Therapy and Science (2013). Staffordshire University.
Experience
I have worked in a number of organisations, offering face to face counselling to both adults and young people. I have fifteen years’ experience working therapeutically with individuals with mental health problems and complex trauma histories, including nine years working in mental health hospitals.
Areas of specialist interest
I have special interest and experience in early relational childhood trauma, PTSD, addiction, relationship breakdown between parents and children, and working with complex and long-standing issues, and psychosomatic/ medically unexplained symptoms.
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.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Therapies offered
Photos & videos
Fees
£50.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
£50 per hour per session payable via bank transfer, or cash.
The number of sessions will be unique to each individual dependent on the complexity of the problems you face and the solutions you seek.
I see individuals on a weekly basis.
Concessions are offered to students and those referred through charities/support services.
I require at least 24 hours notice of cancellation or the full fee will be payable.
Further information
I am a fully accredited clinical member of the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). I abide by the UKCP and Sherwood Psychotherapy Training Institute code of ethics and professional practice.
