This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
I am a fully qualified counsellor offering face to face therapy for adults and young people (18+) in the Bristol area. I practice in both Southville and in Old Market.
I am trained to work with different styles of psychotherapy – blending my approach to the work as sometimes one style isn’t always a good fit. This is partly why I offer a free initial telephone call so that we can discuss what is happening for you in life and how we might best work together. It also gives you a chance to ask me any questions you may have about therapy.
My approach to therapy is like a working partnership where you will be given the time and space to make sense of your experiences, thoughts and feelings; whatever may be causing you pain and finding it difficult to cope with the world and the demands of human relationships.
Therapy is a gradual process of understanding and coming to know ourselves with the help of a thoughtful and experienced guide who knows the territory. It is a process of reclaiming our emotional and physical selves; helping us to see our relationship to life and others in ways that allow us to see ourselves a little more clearly and to make changes if we choose to do so.
It might be said that a good experience of therapy is when we sense a change in our ideas of ourselves, our lives and our relationships; seeing ourselves through the prism of a more compassionate and thoughtful lens; an experience and understanding of ourselves which may have been missing in our early lives and may be missing in our current lives.
Who you take this journey with is important and it is worth thinking about the kind of person you might feel most comfortable to be with during this process. It is quite usual to see a few people before making your decision and committing yourself to one therapist. As always, your gut feeling is often your best guide.
I am experienced working with long term anxiety and relationship issues, depression, loneliness, addiction, sexuality and issues of identity. I am also experienced working with clients diagnosed and living with ADHD. I trained and qualified at BCPC and I am a member of BACP, whose ethical codes of practice are integrated into my approach.
Training, qualifications & experience
I trained for 4 years at Bath College of Psychotherapy and Counselling (BCPC) for the Advanced Diploma in Humanistic and Integrative Counselling. This course is recognised and accredited by both BACP and UKCP.
I am a registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP).
I began practicing in the BANES area since 2020 having previously worked with Bristol Mind as a volunteer for 2 years. I have lived in Bristol since 2018.
My previous career was in the design and printing industry, working in production.
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
£50.00 per session
Free initial telephone session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
My fees are £50 per session. Each session is 50 minutes long. If you feel that therapy might be helpful and you would like to learn more, you can write to me at:
pkmel@proton.me
I then usually arrange a free telephone consultation to have a brief 30 minute chat with you, where I can answer any questions you may have and get to learn a little more about each other and how I work. If you feel comfortable, we can then arrange an initial face to face session.
