Peter Hellsten
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hello and welcome to my profile page. My name is Peter Hellsten and I am a counsellor, psychotherapist and trauma therapist with nearly 30 years experience in the helping professions.
I graduated from the University of Edinburgh, where I trained both in the psychodynamic and person-centred traditions, which continue to inform my therapeutic stance. As a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, I practice within a framework of ethical guidelines and standards.
My therapeutic practice is based on the idea that difficulties experienced in the present quite often have their roots in the past. We may, without being aware of it, have formed patterns of thinking, feeling, relating and behaving that may have become troublesome, unhelpful or unwanted in our lives today.
Counselling and psychotherapy can provide a nurturing relationship in a comfortable and safe environment, where we can give free expression to our feelings, explore our thoughts and reflect on our behaviours and experiences. Therapy can help people overcome ‘stuckness’ that stands in the way of emotional and mental well-being. By moving to a more fluid, expansive way of being, positive feelings such as empathy, self-esteem, love, courage and contentment may increase.
I welcome anyone who feels that counselling and psychotherapy may be of help. You may want to explore a particular issue or situation in your life, or invest in your continued personal growth and development.
Whilst I promote and encourage personal growth with clients, I am equally committed to my own continuous personal and professional development. Over the past years I have developed a particular interest in working with trauma and this has led me to start training in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy. In addition, I am currently studying for a PhD in Counselling Studies at The University of Edinburgh.
If you would like to find out more, or wish to book an initial appointment with me, please visit my website at www.peterhellsten.co.uk
For now, take care and I look forward to hearing from you.
Training, qualifications & experience
- Master in Social Work/DipSW
- PgCert Social Services Leadership (Robert Gordon University Aberdeen)
- PgDipBA (Robert Gordon University Aberdeen)
- COSCA Cert. Counselling Skills (Edinburgh College)
- PgDip in Counselling/Psychotherapy (The University of Edinburgh)
- Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for the Treatment of Trauma
- PhD Couns. Studies [Candidate] (The University of Edinburgh)
I have experience in supporting clients with a range of issues, such as anxiety, depression, loss, bereavement and grief, low self-esteem, anger, trauma, dissociation and dissociative disorders, relationships, gender and sexuality as well as victimisation and bullying.
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
Other areas of counselling I deal with
- Coming out
- Gender Identity
- High risk sexual behaviours
- LGBTQI+ issues
- (Complex) Trauma and Dissociative disorders
- OCD
Therapies offered
Photos & videos
Fees
£65.00 per session
Additional information
Finding a counsellor or psychotherapist you can trust and relate to is really important and central to the positive outcome of working together. With this in mind, your first appointment will allow you to meet with me, discuss your needs, hopes and desired outcomes and also to help you decide if I am the right therapist for you. The fee for an initial appointment is £65.-
Thereafter, if we agree to meet regularly for a period of time or on an open-ended basis my fee is £65 for a standard 50-minute appointment. In some circumstances I might be able to offer concessional rates, however spaces are limited and may not always be available right away.
When I work
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I work Mondays and Thursdays online.
Further information
My consulting rooms (A Quiet Room at the Shore) in Edinburgh are located in the heart of The Shore in Leith and can easily be reached by public transport. There is free on street parking available. I am available in Edinburgh Monday to Wednesdays.
