Karen Smith

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Dip. Integrative Counselling MBACP
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

Sittingbourne, Kent, ME9
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

About me

I have over 30 years' extensive clinical experience of working as a nurse with a range of difficulties and diversity of clients. As an integrative counsellor, the work we do together is adapted to your specific needs, whatever they may be, to truly move past these feelings, by understanding where they originate from and deal with them as they present in your current life. Many of my clients have experienced:

-       Feeling overwhelmed or anxious, leading to not stepping outside your comfort zone and avoiding new challenges.

-       Feeling that you are used to being able to cope well, then find yourself painfully stuck, unable to move forward and unable to cope. Leading to losing sight of your goals and aspirations. 

-       Blocking out experiencing painful feelings by saying things like, ‘I am fine’, ‘I just need to be strong and carry on’, or ‘I don’t want to come across as being or feeling weak’. 

-       Fear of rejection leading to not taking risks, connecting with others, and achieving your goals.

-       You or someone you care for is living with chronic pain or a long-term health condition that you fear is controlling or significantly impacting on you enjoying life.

-       Something like a traumatic event, accident, bereavement, or loss, happened in the past, and feeling that you should be over it by now, but it is still affecting the present.

-       Feeling of emptiness or disconnected to yourself and others, leading to feelings of being isolated or loneliness.

If any of the above sounds familiar, then I can help. Working together in a supportive environment, we can help you embrace who you truly are through:

-       Developing understanding of your experiences to begin to overcome and develop greater inner strength and resilience.

-       Identifying limiting self-beliefs and challenge them, so they no longer hinder you.

-       Developing confidence through learning to challenge negative thoughts and build a strong sense of self-worth.

-       Exploring your own solutions to gain the courage to take risks making effective changes in your life or finding ways of coping with situations that have no solution, to begin to pursue your goals.

-       Feeling more confident and in control to take risks in seeking new opportunities and achieve your goals.

Imagine, if you could conquer your challenges, what kind of person would you like to be? How would you begin to view and experience your world? 

All my clients have wanted to make changes that will improve their situation, and through providing the environment to explore thoughts and emotions, work together to help feel empowered to lead the life you desire and enjoy. 

Contact me, by phone or email to discuss any questions or book a free 20-minute initial consultation, to explore ways of working together. I look forward to hearing from you and working with you.

Training, qualifications & experience

Qualification

Level 6 Diploma in Integrative Counselling.

Training

Impact of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) on Adult Survivors and their Relationships

Mental Health First Aider

Adverse Childhood Experiences

Mental Health and the Body:Treating Trauma

CSA Hope for Healing

Video and Phone counselling 2.0

An Introduction to Therapeutic Doodling with Clients

Experience

I have volunteered as a counsellor at Mind

Member organisations

BACP
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP)

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

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

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.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy

Fees

£50.00 per session
Free initial telephone session

Concessions offered for

  • Low income
  • Keyworkers
  • OAPs
  • Students
  • Unemployed

When I work

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Morning
Afternoon
Evening
Night

Sittingbourne, Kent, ME9

Type of session

In person
Online
Phone

Types of client

Young adults (18-24)
Adults (25-64)
Older Adults (65+)

Key details

DBS check

In England and Wales, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS, formerly known as CRB) carry out criminal records checks for individuals working with vulnerable groups, such as children. To find out more, visit gov.uk , or contact this professional directly

Online platforms

Zoom
Karen Smith
Karen Smith