Oskars Grins

Only with knowing yourself as you are and the root of your distress can you make positive changes. Person-centred therapy is a talking therapy based on the view that everyone has the capacity and underlying desire for personal growth, given the right conditions.

As a therapist, I embody and offer such conditions of unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence in order to help you come to terms with any negative or overwhelming feelings and to change, develop, and grow in accordance with the best interests of yourself. Being valued as a person without the fear of judgement, in a therapeutic environment, can help you see who you are, fully and honestly, and reconnect with the core of your personal identity, out of which positive growth can occur. Through therapy, your self-actualising tendency can be kindled and nurtured into a fully realised personality which is accurate to, and honours, your ideal-self.

I am registered to work with clients in the United Kingdom (UK) and have varying professional experience – be that employment or in the voluntary sector. This has primarily consisted of open-ended in-person sessions, however, I have extensively provided person-centred therapy over the phone and video, as well as text-based therapy sessions. I believe therapy should be accessible and affordable, therefore I offer a very flexible approach.

I am someone who listens to your story, your history, and everything you have done or gone through. I facilitate the experience of ‘therapeutic presence’. This is deep empathic listening, non-judgmental acceptance, and genuineness. Together, we explore whatever seems most important in answering this question: How will I know that therapy will have made a difference for me?

I am a person-centred therapist which means that an integral part of our work together will be the development of a therapeutic alliance wherein we explore your thoughts, feelings, and everything in between so that you can have a full and honest understanding of yourself. You might feel you have no one to talk to even with people all around you. Supportive family and friends are great, yet it is difficult to talk to loved ones about feeling anxious or being depressed as it is these people that often try and ‘fix’ you or don’t acknowledge that you are struggling. You may find it easier to talk about familial, personal, or relationship issues with an independent professional therapist.

This is a talking therapy, not necessarily one in which I teach you specific techniques – for that I would recommend a cognitive-behavioural therapist. I do not subscribe to the medical model of treating symptoms of distress or over diagnosing. A medical model of mental health is highly inappropriate and often limited, and lacking, in addressing core issues. Person-centred psychology and psychotherapy is based on understanding and experiencing you as a whole person, not a collection of symptoms in need of reduction.

There are many approaches to therapy and many more practitioners to endeavour this process with. There is no right way to start therapy if you’ve never gone through it before. It can also be difficult jumping back into therapy if you’ve taken a break or have had a negative experience before. If, however, you think that we might work well together, get in touch and we’ll go from there.

My clients and I have explored the difficulties of adjusting to everyday life following cancer treatment; health anxiety; LGBT related issues; negative or damaging results from previous therapy; relationship difficulties including open-relationships and infidelity, as well as coping with life changes, such as entering a new career or developing professionally. I have a specialist interest in grief and bereavement and worked closely with end-of-life and palliative clients as well as their families. Grief and bereavement are a natural reaction to loss but can become stuck – sometimes referred to as Prologued Grief Disorder. Proactively, we can explore how this natural process became ‘stuck’ and where professional grief counselling can help the process forward.

How we approach therapy will be up to us and the long-term goals you bring to the sessions. Perhaps setting such goals and finding a semblance of purpose or direction is why you come to therapy in the first place. Whatever the case, I aim to facilitate as much of this process as possible. As a person-centred practitioner, my approach has always been that of providing an open and confidential space for you to talk with a trained professional in order to explore your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours for the purpose of understanding yourself and others. From such understanding comes the process of change.

All prices are listed prices only, and are negotiable prior to each session.

A single standard counselling session last around an hour (50-to-60-minutes). I charge a Standard Fee for individual counselling sessions at £50 per session or a Reduced Fee at £30 per session; and £70 per session for couples counselling.

At times, our sessions will run slightly over an hour but you will not be charged for this (unless prior agreements are made for longer sessions). For individual counselling sessions, you pay whichever fee you wish (standard fee or reduced fee).

You may pay in cash at either the beginning or end of the session; or utilise a bank transfer electronically. However, you may also wish to pay in advance for several sessions in a ‘block payment’ – for example, a block of four or six sessions.

I offer an initial 'intake session' free of charge lasting around 30-minutes. In this initial session, we will discuss some of the reasons why you've chosen to enter therapy at this time and what you'd like to achieve in our work together. There is no 'standard' approach to a first session in therapy, however, to make the process less daunting or mysterious, here I'll outline some of the things you might expect to see.

1. Introductions

Just as in any meaningful interaction, we'll start off with an introduction. I will tell you about who I am as a therapist and what person-centred counselling is all about.

2. Reasons for Starting Therapy

When we see therapists, it is most often during a very difficult moment in our lives. We will briefly cover why you've chosen to start therapy now and what you'd hope to accomplish. How will you know that coming in for therapy will have made a difference for you? What will be the sign that something has changed?

3. The Contract

When we enter the work of therapy, we enter into a contract. This is done to assure that your right to know the terms and conditions of counselling is protected. It is imperative that you have informed consent and agreement prior to starting any psychological therapy. We will both physically sign a document when in-person; remote sessions will need an electronic signature. If we agree to work together we will sign the document on the same day, however, if you'd like some time before committing we can do this another time instead.

4. Ending the Intake Session

Toward the end of the intake session, chances are you'll know whether you'd like us to work together. If we do agree to begin the process of therapy, either at the end of this initial session or a follow-up email, I will collect some basic information about yourself (such as best contact information, your GP, etc) to make our working relationship as smooth as possible.