About me
Sessions available in-person (central Bath), online and by phone.
However stuck, anxious or confused you may feel, I know that within you is a source of guidance that knows exactly what is right for you and how to move forward. My role is to help you find that wise inner guide.
As a person-centred counsellor, I understand that we live in a culture that teaches us not to trust ourselves. To disregard our feelings, desires and distress and focus on external markers of acceptability and success. At the very least, this will eventually suck all the fun and energy out of life.
At worst, it means facing struggles and pain in isolation – often with a harsh inner critic telling us we’re getting it all wrong and have no right to feel bad or to need help.
The person-centred approach gives you back to yourself. It connects you with an inner source of healing and guidance which will help you move through the world with greater certainty, purpose, pleasure and connection.
Because it centres your unique experience – not any psychological theory or “expertise” – it is especially useful for people whose lived experience has been marginalised and discounted in dominant cultural narratives.
I am actively working to make my practice more inclusive and accessible. I affirm gender, sexuality and relationship diversity. I aim to make my service as accessible as I can – please discuss your needs with me (I work in a ground-floor counselling room).
Research shows that finding a counsellor with whom you can build a relationship of confidence and trust is more vital to the effectiveness of counselling than anything else.
My role is to provide you with the environment of calm, understanding and acceptance that makes it safe to explore what’s troubling for you and to try out different perspectives. I’ll suggest some creative ways of thinking about yourself and your situation and I may offer some ideas about the human condition which can help make sense of things that have been puzzling you.
Different ways you can work with me:
Open-ended counselling: I offer a few spaces for weekly ongoing counselling that lasts for as long as you want it. This offers a stable, reassuring space to explore tricky issues at the pace that's right for you.
Fixed-term counselling: We can agree a number of sessions to work towards your counselling goals. This option is more flexibly available and the overall cost is predictable.
ONEplus counselling: an innovative approach designed to create meaningful change in just one session, by identifying what is blocking you from resolving an issue, then making a plan to get you unstuck. Most people who choose it don’t need further counselling, but more sessions are available.
Resilience Circle: a combination of group learning and support with one-to-one sessions over 12 weeks, designed to give you the benefits of counselling at about half the usual hourly cost.
Email me at karen@karenbray.co.uk if you would like to know more about any of these options.
Training, qualifications & experience
My primary training (FdSc, Distinction) and orientation is in the Person-Centred Approach. This means I offer a safe and accepting therapeutic relationship which honours all your thoughts and feelings (even the ones you'd rather not have) as having a constructive purpose.
My BA (Hons) is in Integrative Counselling. So I can draw on other therapeutic models as they seem useful, particularly the solution-focused approach (clarifying a better future to work towards, rather than just dwelling on what's painful now). I bring a compassionate perspective to the self-criticism and inner conflict many clients live with.
I am currently undertaking a two-year certification training in Embodied Relational therapy (due to qualify in March 2027), which takes a decolonising perspective on our relationship with natural systems (including our own bodies) and on the experience and knowledge of marginalised people. I am also training to better work with people of diverse genders, sexuality and relationships including non-monogamy, kink and BDSM
My experience includes counselling at both residential and non-residential addiction treatment centres, and with an agency specialising in recovery from childhood trauma, abuse and neglect. I have supported people who feel overwhelmed by anxiety, anger, grief, depression, low self-worth, isolation and traumatic memories to find a better emotional balance; like and understand themselves more; and feel stronger, more resourced and hopeful about the future.
I have also counselled young people aged 18 to 25, who can find a focus on the value of their inner experiencing a refreshing contrast to the "oughts" and "shoulds" that particularly plague that age group.
And, as a qualified mediator, I have a longstanding interest in supporting people to communicate more effectively and to manage anger and conflict constructively, in relationships, families, and at work.
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.
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
Other areas of counselling I deal with
Twelve-step friendly practitioner. I work with codependency, assertiveness and effective communication.
Therapies offered
Photos & videos
Fees
£65.00 - £100.00
Additional information
I offer one-hour sessions (rather than the standard 50 minutes). for ongoong counselling (open-ended or fixed-term) I do charge for the initial session, but if you don't find it helpful I'll refund the fee.
Open-ended weekly counselling: £65 per hour (weekday daytimes only).
Fixed-term counselling: £65-£75 per hour (usually weekly, evening and weekend appointments available).
ONEplus counselling: £100 per package, including preparation, one-hour session and follow-up call. (evening and weekend appointments available).
Resilience Circle: Please enquire about details, dates and cost.
Further information
I offer counselling in-person in central Bath, and by video link. I am also experienced in phone counselling, which can be the most appropriate format for some people. We can consider which option will be most suitable when arranging our appointment.
