Rachel Allen
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
At Rallentando Therapy I offer spacious listening to encourage recovery and growth.
I offer counselling for adults, time-limited or long term, face to face in my therapy room in Dumfries or over Zoom/WhatsApp or phone nationwide.
I'm integratively trained which means I'm skilled in a variety of approaches to support you in facing and making sense of whatever is troubling you.
These include exploring the past, present and future. For example, how the past is showing up painfully in your present experience and what inner conflicts unconsciously hold you back from living as you would like to. Also very practically looking at what is difficult in the present and what support you need in making changes you would like to going forward. Relationships are key and can deeply shape us. I work in a relational way, and people have described my style as warm: both compassionate and challenging, supportive and open. I'm experienced in using mindfulness and creativity as part of therapy if these are approaches which appeal to you.
I believe in people's capacity to grow from life's painful events and relationships and offer a non-judgemental, safe space for you to explore what you need to at whatever pace you need and rebuild your sense of who you are.
My areas of experience in work prior to training in counselling include working in mental health, physical health and palliative care settings in supportive roles and management. I have also taught equality and diversity, holistic end of life care and facilitated debriefs and staff support/reflective practice groups. I work alongside private practice as a counsellor in a variety of ways. I teach counselling skills, and also train people in end of life holistic care. In the past I have worked in occupational health counselling, offering time limited sessions. All these experiences add to the variety and richness of life which I value and enjoy.
Training, qualifications & experience
Advanced Diploma in Humanistic Integrative Counselling (including working with children and young people)
Open Dialogue Practitioner Training
PG Dip Systemic Approaches in Working with Individuals, Families and Organisations
Introduction to Compassion Focused Therapy
8 week mindfulness course.
Additional training in supporting people at end of life, in working with trauma and some experience of working therapeutically with people who are LGBTQI+
Member organisations
COSCA is the professional body for counselling and psychotherapy in Scotland, and seeks to advance all forms of counselling and psychotherapy and the use of counselling skills by promoting best practice and through the delivery of a range of sustainable services. COSCA Counsellor Accreditation is a pathway to entry onto the UKRC.
It is a requirement of all individual and organisational members of COSCA to abide by its Statement of Ethics and Code of Practice and be accountable to the Complaints Procedure. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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
Photos & videos
Fees
£50.00 per session
Concessions offered for
When I work
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Do ask if my availability doesn't match yours as flexibility is sometimes possible.
