Pete Low
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Different things bring us into counselling or therapy for the first time. For many of us, it is because our usual ways of navigating and dealing with the challenges in our lives no longer seem to be doing the trick. That might be the case if, for example, you're feeling anxious or depressed, struggling to disconnect, lacking joy, having trouble with sleep, or finding that your mind keeps running away with itself and that you don't seem able to get it to stop.
Sometimes we have an idea why this is happening -- for example, we find ourselves in newly stressful circumstances or we've undergone traumatic experience(s) -- and at others the cause is more of a mystery. Perhaps you might somehow just not feel like our 'old self' and, try as you might, you can't quite make your way back.
This can be, in my experience, a good time to come to counselling. It often helps to talk through what is happening in your life with someone who is trained to listen (and who is not directly involved in the events you describe). Very possibly it’s your first step towards improving your understanding of what you're experiencing, of dealing with your past and of finding new ways to navigate your challenges in the present.
What are the sessions with me like?
The counselling process is as individual as are all of us, so when we begin our work together we will spend a little time together figuring out what would be most useful for you. Depending on what has brought you into therapy, we might focus mainly on your present circumstances or we may give greater attention to how your history and life experiences have shaped the person who you have become today. For most of us, it will be some combination of the two that works best.
My aim is that you'll feel that you're sharing the counselling room with a fellow human being, rather than with an impassive mental health professional. We won't be shy about delving into difficult material when needed, but there may also be times when we come to laugh together (I understand that may feel a distant prospect for you at the moment). Occasionally, I'll share my emotional responses to the material we discuss, as it can sometimes be helpful to see how another person reacts to the situations and challenges we're facing.
As we explore the varied thoughts, feelings and sensations which make your experience of the world, the hope is that you'll begin to gain new insights and develop new perspectives on parts of your life, experiences and relationships. We are all of us complex beings and one aspect of the work will be bringing this complexity, in all its glory, to the counselling room. At times, this will mean exploring those aspects of ourselves and our experiences that currently feel troublesome, painful, or even destabilising. At others, it'll mean celebrating your successes, strengths and joys (when they come).
Training, qualifications & experience
- Postgraduate diploma in humanistic psychotherapeutic counselling from the specialist Metanoia Institute in London.
- Registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
- Experienced in providing short- and long-term therapy within the NHS and at various community counselling organisations, alongside my private practice in Oxford.
- Committed to ongoing development as a trainee member of psychotherapy body, UKCP, and shortly to complete a final MSc psychotherapy qualification.
In addition to my formal qualifications, I also bring plenty of experience as a client in therapy, which I found to be profoundly supportive during my own previous mental health crisis and recovery. It was the impact of my own experiences of therapy that first inspired me to retrain to become a counsellor. Prior to that, I spent a couple of decades working in human rights and the development sector for universities, not-for-profits and international donor agencies. During this time, I spent many years living abroad, mainly in Latin America and continental Europe, but also in Africa.
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
Therapies offered
Fees
£65.00 per session
Concessions offered for
When I work
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