Laura Portsmouth

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Fda Registered MBACP. Office, zoom, phone or outdoor therapy
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14
Available for new clients
Available for new clients

This professional is available for new clients.

About me

Get back the life you deserve!   (Free 30 minute phone or zoom call available)

Hello and Welcome,

Firstly, I really hope that you are able to feel proud of yourself for finding the courage to take the first step towards seeking help, which is often the most difficult one to take.

Are you feeling fed up, exasperated and ashamed due to your own negative thoughts ruminating over and over, spiralling out of control and debilitating you? Preventing you from feeling able to help yourself or do anything about them? As if they are controlling you instead of you being in control of them?

Please do not suffer alone in trying to deal with this for any longer than you already have.

I can help you to understand where these thoughts and beliefs came from and learn how to find ways to change them. You no longer have to believe your only choice is to accept them or remain stuck holding the shame that doesn`t belong to you. You deserve and are entitled to feeling and believing that you are good enough, your life is worth living, others do value you for the person you are and that your thoughts, feelings, opinions and preferences are important and as valid and matter as much as anybody else`s.

I can provide you with the safe, non-judgemental and non-critical space you need to process and work through why and how your brain chooses to only focus and listen to all of these negative thoughts.  At the heart of my work is my belief that with the right support, everyone has the capacity for change. To gain awareness and a deeper understanding of how you may have developed your own coping mechanisms/ways of being that helped you deal with past abusive, traumatic, demoralising or deprecating experiences but you realise now that these no longer serve you well in your present life. You can reconnect and rediscover who you are when you understand why and how this all developed. You will then feel more capable of setting yourself free from feeling trapped underneath all the negativity and allow your true, authentic self to emerge. 

When we feel overwhelmed, depressed, anxious or alone, listening to relentless and repetitive negative thoughts telling us that we`re just not good enough, that we`re worthless and useless, this can completely debilitate us and stop us from feeling able to even get out of bed in the mornings.

Taking this first big step and sharing your feelings with me, a trained, unbiased person who only has your best interests at heart, can help alleviate your distress. This may be the first and only time you will experience another person being completely on your side, interested in only you, valuing you and completely focused on only you. I can offer you a safe, calm, trusting, respectful and non-judgemental environment in which I sincerely hope you find peace, acceptance, warmth and a true sense of worthiness as we work together to free you from the issues causing your distress.

Walk and Talk Therapy

Being out in nature, gently moving at whatever pace feels right for you helps to release endorphins which leads to changes in your stress levels and physiology. This leads to feeling more motivated and able to shift your emotional state. Though your story may be difficult to tell or even hear yourself say, the positive elements of enrichment and growth gained from being surrounded by nature encourages you to make the changes that perhaps you have been thinking about for a while. Instead of feeling drawn to making eye contact as happens in the therapy room and for some is quite daunting, moving forward and looking ahead can feel much more freeing. Walking alongside each other can help to boost your immune system and research has proven that this very basic activity can help to reduce many symptoms of anxiety and depression.

I have particular experience in working with a number of issues including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, trauma, lack of confidence, relationship, family and childhood issues, terminal illness, bereavement and any kind of loss. If you are a parent whose teenager is going through the process of transitioning, I can help you make sense of all of your feelings in the safe, confidential space you so need to help you cope and manage this stressful and painful experience as best you can. Having also faced many of life's challenges myself over the years including depression, bereavement and divorce I feel able to really be alongside you in your struggle.

How I work

I believe everyone has the capacity to reach their full potential or to be the person they want to be. I offer a warm, empathic, genuine and sensitive approach, where you will not feel judged or criticised but simply given the time and space to be listened to and to work through your concerns. This leads to you gaining more clarity, acceptance, self-awareness and empowerment, thus enabling you to make substantial changes within yourself and how you see your place in the world. To explore aspects of your life causing the concern, distress and anxiety and getting to the root cause of the anxiety helps to alleviate it.  Whether it be problems in your relationship, issues from your past or at your workplace or just an overall feeling of discontentment, the aim is to find a new perspective from which new choices may be found, therefore alleviating your feelings of worthlessness, helplessness, frustration and unhappiness.

I aspire to treat each person as the unique individual that they are, embracing difference and diversity and upholding the vital values of integrity, respect, competence, resilience and humility that I feel are imperative in allowing a strong therapeutic relationship to develop. Confidentiality is also extremely important between us and is something I adhere to and take very seriously to ensure your trust in me is upheld. Only in circumstances where I feel yours, or another person’s safety is threatened, would I have to consult with you regarding confidentiality being broken.

As no one size fits all, it is entirely up to you to choose what would be best for you, zoom, office, outdoor or telephone therapy.

To find out more about me and how I can help, please watch my introductory video.

I regard our relationship as sacred and would feel honoured to be the person you choose to help you. Give me a call on 07800 512918 or email me on lauraprtsmth@gmail.com to arrange our first meeting.

Training, qualifications & experience

I gained an FDA in Humanistic Counselling through the University of Greenwich and incorporate the Person-Centred and Existential approaches, always putting the client at the centre of my focus in a relational manner.

I am a registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy and fully embrace their ethical framework within my practice. To view more from the BACP website, please click here.

During my training my placements were at Send Women`s Prison and The Royal Surrey Hospital. Since then I have volunteered at a Doctor`s surgery in Woking and Parent-Time In Guildford and have also worked as a volunteer counsellor at The Fountain Centre Cancer unit at The Royal Surrey. 

I have also more recently volunteered with Frontline19, an organisation founded in 2020 to offer help and support to all the NHS frontline workers trying to deal with their stress and trauma working through the pandemic.

During this time I also ran my own private practice and am experienced in dealing with a diverse selection of clients suffering from issues such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem/confidence, bereavement, domestic violence, relationship problems, emotional abuse, terminal illness and stress to name a few.

I am obligated as your counsellor to receive regular supervision as required by the BACP code of ethics. The purpose being to ensure a professional and ethical standard of working is maintained and upheld throughout our working relationship.

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

Other areas of counselling I deal with

A review from client GB, November 2022,

"I highly recommend Laura Portsmouth. My sessions took place on time, there was flexibility in arranging them, I felt listened to, and above all, she helped me to get through my problems. She was patient. Friendly. I never felt judged. There was the option of zoom or meeting in person. I have recommended her to family and friends in need since. She knew the right approach for me and we worked towards my goals. Thank you!"

A review from client JB, March 2023,

"After suffering with anxiety and ptsd for many years, I started seeing Laura twice a week and my life changed. She made me feel comfortable and helped me understand my problems and the best way to deal with them. LIFE is so  much better because of her! Thank you. 

Photos & videos

Fees

£50.00 per session
Free initial telephone or online session

Concessions offered for

  • Low income
  • Keyworkers
  • OAPs
  • Students
  • Trainee counsellors
  • Unemployed
  • Refugees

Additional information

It is important that the boundaries of our professional relationship are upheld, therefore our sessions will need to start and end at the agreed time.

An initial consultation fee of £40 for our first meeting where we can decide if we feel we can work together in further sessions.
A fee of £50 for every 60-minute session thereafter.

Bank transfer is paid before each session. I can also accept cash payment at the start of our office or walking session.

When I work

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Morning
Afternoon
Evening
Night

I am available, weekdays, evenings and weekends for Walk and Talk, Office or Online/Telephone sessions.

I am now able to resume doing home visits also.

Further information

Previous review from a zoom client:

"Before working with Laura, I had never gone to any kind of counselling and didn't know what to expect. I decided to seek help after my anxiety became progressively worse, and I found I was struggling more and more to cope with these feelings. In our first sessions, we were able to explore things in my past that I had never considered to be a big issue and link them to my ways of managing my stress in my current life. My experience was so insightful and allowed me to see clearly how I had developed negative ways of dealing with stress. I have found my time working with Laura to be so empowering and it has helped me identify things about myself I never knew and it has empowered me enough to work towards a life I now know I want to pursue. I feel happier and healthier than I have done in a long time and I am excited to pursue my future with more confidence and less self doubt."

A previous review from a Walk and Talk client:-

"I`d been struggling with past trauma for years, that was exacerbated by the lockdown. Zoom meetings were too formal and I found it very difficult to open up. Walking and talking about everything helped me massively. It was very relaxed and felt like a walk with a friend. A meeting on zoom or in a room with eye contact scared me. But while walking you don`t have to make eye contact unless you want to and it helped it feel less like the spotlight was on me. Without the option of walk and talk therapy and of course Laura`s help and calm manner, I would still be dealing with that trauma today. She gave me my life back and I cannot thank her enough."

Quote from Charles Darwin:

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives, it is the one that is the most adaptable to change".

Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14

Type of session

In person
Online
Phone
Home visits

Types of client

Young people
Adults
Older Adults
Employee Assistance Programme

Key details

There are parking spaces at the back of the houses where I will be looking out for you to arrive as my counselling room is in my back garden.

Online platforms

Whatsapp
Zoom

Social