Merry Gibbons

Welcome.
Hi, I'm a BACP registered Counsellor, an EMCC accredited Senior Coach Practitioner and a Holistic Wellbeing Specialist. I also work as a Wellbeing & Healthcare coach supporting those living with chronic and incurable illness, or caring for someone living with chronic or incurable illness.

I offer both a purely counselling, or purely coaching approach. However, I also offer coach therapy, a blend of counselling and coaching. This means I can support you on both a therapeutic journey, along side a more problem solving goal orientated one. The choice is always what ever works best for you.

I work with multiple approaches because everyones different and one approach won't work for everyone. When wearing my counselling hat I draw upon Person-centred, Existential, Gestalt, Acceptance commitment therapy, Compassion focused and Mindfulness  approaches. When wearing my coaching hat I work with a problem solving/goal orientated coaching approach incorporating positive psychology, health and wellbeing coaching, life coaching. Which ever way you choose to work, the intention is to support you to take back the reins of your own life, your choices and to feel you're back in the drivers seat again.

I offer you an empathic, non-judgemental, listening ear in a calm, confidential environment in which you can share and explore the things on your mind. This can lead to a deeper understanding and acceptance of things, enabling you to make changes from within, work to heal from past difficulties or loss, or just be able to let go, move on and live the life you wish to live. I believe you carry all your own answers, that you have the ability to be the change you wish to see, the author of your own life and that the work we do together just supports you to achieve this.

How will we work together
Life can get tough at times. You may find yourself dealing with difficult experiences and managing big thoughts and feelings. It can sometimes be hard to cope, feel overwhelming and you can find yourself looking for answers or seeking change. This is something you don't have to undertake alone, yet many of us try to. Being received without judgement, by someone committed to hearing, supporting and understanding your experience can be immensely comforting and support your ability to achieve clarity on things that may feel confusing, unsurmountable or overwhelming. Identifying different choices and responses to any challenges supports your ability to move forwards and create positive change within your self, your quality of life and your relationships.

I offer you a supportive therapeutic relationship in which we work together to explore more deeply the situation or issue you choose to work with. I do not judge you nor make assumptions regarding the experiences and thoughts you share, just accepting them openly and unconditionally for the difficulties they bring you. Through exploring these more deeply we can support your ability to build a deeper more accepting relationship with yourself, others or your life generally.

I work with your whole self, focusing on what is happening in our session from one moment to the next. This supports your ability to build greater self-awareness as sometimes negative thoughts, beliefs or behavioural patterns limit our self-awareness, our clarity and the choices we make, which in turn impacts how we live and the quality of our day to day life. Becoming aware of how you feel, act and think in the present moment is key to you seeing where you can make positive changes that support your personal growth and fullfillment.  I support your potential to tap into your resilient powerful self so you can recognise different choices you can make in the face of life’s challenges. This way you can work towards being the positive change you wish to see.

If you choose to we can work creatively using drawing, objects and images, or mindfulness and guided imagery techniques.  It is important you feel safe within our work together and therefore I offer you an environment where you are able to make the choices that are right for you.

What to expect when you contact me
 When you first contact me I will greet you and send you my working hours and dates for a initial session. If you decide to proceed we'll arrange a time and date for our first session and discuss fees and payment. 

The first session
This session is for you to tell me a bit about yourself and what's been happening in your life. We'll explore your reasons for seeking counselling or coaching and your hopes and expectations of therapy.  In this session we can also address any questions you may have.  This way I can begin to understand how best we will work together as we begin to build our therapeutic relationship, but also if I'm the best therapist for you. 

How long will we work together 
Counselling or coaching is a journey therefore it is often difficult to gauge an exact estimate of how many sessions you will require.  Therefore we will review every 6 weeks.  This enables us to assess where you feel you are and reflect on the choices and changes you believe you have made. This is also a chance to hone in on anything you may feel you would like to work further on or introduce into our sessions. At the end of the review session you can make a decision how you would like to proceed from there.

Ending therapy
At any time you can choose to end our sessions, however I'll always encourage an end session.  This is so as we can review the work you've done during our time together and the changes you have made. This allows you to mark the end of your therapeutic journey, affirm and acknowledge what you are taking away from it and what your commitment to this process and the work you've put in has achieved.

Wellbeing & healthcare coaching

I also support those living with chronic and incurable illness, or caring for someone living with chronic or incurable illness.

When managing the challenges of living with or caring for chronic or incurable  illness, the focus can feel all about your physical health. You maybe trying to process a difficult diagnosis, managing treatment schedules, physical side effects, attending follow ups at the hospital, scans, or even recovering from life changing surgery. However, you may also be experiencing worry, stress or anxiety about things you wouldn’t normally worry about. Your illness may also impact other things such as your sleep, your energy levels, your motivation, your relationships, or just how you feel about yourself. 
I offer you support with all of the above and more. I don’t just offer psychological and emotional support, I offer practical strategies, tools and techniques to help you find other ways to manage any challenges along the way. 
I also help you not to be too hard on yourself. One of your greatest strengths lies in how you choose to treat yourself, talk to yourself & look after yourself when living with a chronic or incurable illness. Identifying and embracing these different, more empowering choices can help you feel able to take back some control, nurture a kinder, more compassionate relationship with yourself and create a more positive experience in your day-to-day life.

I'm also offer support to those living with an incurable diagnosis. You can find you feel paralysed, or lost or confused and unable to identify next steps, or unable to live well day to day. I support you to create a mindset and environment that enables you to improve your quality of life and live well, whilst also preparing for end of life. Living with incurable illness often means you're protective of upsetting loved ones, but also needing to talk. You may find you're very aware of your mortality, perhaps have an urge to address unfinished business, get your affairs in order, write down funeral wishes, or have tough conversations with loved ones, who are perhaps not ready to accept or hear what you wish to talk about. Either way these things can make it feel very isolating and overwhelming. Working together we help you empower yourself to prioritise self-care, identify changing priorities, make powerful choices, voice important wishes, prioritise time for experiences, make memories and very importantly focus on getting on with living now & living well! 

Living with a life limiting or challenging condition or illness

Living with chronic illness

Caring for someone with a life limiting or challenging condition or illness

Caring for a terminally ill child, family member or partner

My fees are as follows:

Adults: £60
12-18 year olds: £45

How will you make a payment

I kindly ask for payment after each session either by bank transfer or cash.

Working with children and young people

I offer young people a safe and confidential space in which to share and explore any anxieties and concerns they may be holding onto.  Hearing and receiving them with total acceptance and without judgment can support their ability to feel comfortable and safe enough to disclose any worries they may be holding onto.  Many young people hide their real thoughts and feelings causing increased anxiety and unhappiness.  Being able to open up, share and explore any concerns helps them reduce feelings of confusion or distress, supporting their ability to feel more in control, find their own solutions and make choices. As a counsellor and coach I can offer purely counselling our purely coaching. However, I also offer a blend of both to support both a therapeutic journey, along side a more problem solving goal orientated one.

For young people talking can sometimes feel too difficult but working creatively offers them other ways to communicate e.g. drawing, objects, sand or cards and pictures. In my work with young people witnessing their commitment to the therapeutic and coaching process supports my belief that working creatively, non-judgementally and non-directively empowers young people to create positive change in their lives, ultimately creating the life they wish to live.

Teenagers and young adults are at an especially critical point of their development physically, emotionally and socially.  They are readying them selves to become independent adults and start out on their own life path. Counselling and coaching can support their ability to gain a deeper understanding and acceptance of themselves, supporting their ability to evolve into an adult who comes from more self-accepting, happy and confident place.

Working with those living with cancer or other challenging conditions

Living with cancer or other challenging conditions can be an isolating experience. You can feel vulnerable and out of control. Counselling and coaching can help it all feel more manageable. I provide a calm, confidential space in which you can share your feelings, thoughts, explore difficult choices and issues or voice unspoken fears you maybe holding onto. These may not necessarily be illness related but have become more prominent as a consequence of it. By talking through the things on your mind you can deepen your understanding of your experience. Talking about it can make it feel more manageable, supporting your ability to tap into your natural reservoir of inner-strength and resilience.  This can help support your ability to maintain positivity, your sense of self and wellbeing during this time.

Other ways I work

If you choose, we can also work with breathing, mindfulness, guided imagery or relaxation techniques to support your therapeutic journey and growth. This is especially powerful when dealing with anxiety, fatigue, low concentration, depression and issues of low self-esteem and confidence. These approaches also offer you practical tools so you can create a tool kit of tried & tested techniques that work for you to support you manage any anxiety or challenges life throws at you.