About me
Hello, I'm Rachel (Pronouns: she/her), and I believe at times we all need a place to be heard, to feel safe, and to feel supported. I offer such a place, so that together we can reflect on what you are struggling with and what may have caused this struggle. Below is an introduction to the way I work with my clients.
A Foundation
Sessions will be focused on you and your aims, whilst I hold a safe place for us to build trust, uncover obstacles, work to challenge perceptions, and so build awareness. Both client and therapist must work hard in the session in order for it to be beneficial, so I play an active role in supporting you, and offering an alternative perspective and insight. We will initially take time to build a trusting, working relationship, so that challenges and suggestions feel comfortable.
Moving from Past to Present
With the foundations in place, feelings of safety and trust will hopefully grow, and sharing can begin. We can reflect on your experiences, feelings, and thoughts. The roots of your problems may lie in pain from the past, but linking this to present feelings allows us to understand how it has shaped you in the now, and then we can work with it more effectively. Unconscious feelings and drives tied up with our past can often block progress. I will use my training to notice these processes, bring them into the open, so we can facilitate freeing you of blockages and bringing you into the here and now.
Living and being with others
The relationships we form during our lives influence the way we think, feel, and treat ourselves and others. And so they inform our blueprint of how we expect the future to be. The professional relationship we form can be used to explore these feelings and thoughts, and move you towards awareness about how you really affect others and are really perceived by others, as often when we have had difficult past experiences, this can be negatively skewed. Going forward, this awareness can allow you to actively form more satisfying relationships, which will transform the most important relationship of all, the one you have with yourself. It is this relationship that, if nourished, can create feelings of autonomy, self-worth, and self-care, which informs our future outlook for the better.
Training, qualifications & experience
Studies
I obtained a BSc Undergraduate Degree in Psychology in 2010, and then went on to study several college courses in Counselling, before completing my qualifying PostGraduate Diploma in Counselling & Psychotherapy at Leeds Beckett University in 2016, working with clients from 2014.
In 2024, I returned to complete a Master’s degree in Integrative Counselling, with my research focused on trans-affirming care (specifically the impact of affirming language in transgender mental healthcare). I am an active TransAlly.
I have also attended many CPD courses, including workshops on gender identity, trauma, eating disorders, and loss, as well as learning about creative ways to hold sessions, such as using Images, Stories, and Sand Tray therapy.
Work and Volunteering
For the majority of my training and early practicing career, I volunteered in a long-term support service for a Sheffield-based charity. I saw clients with a variety of struggles and worked with them between 6 months and 2years as needed.
I have run my private practice, Equinox Talking Therapy, since 2022. I currently do not narrow to any particular client base, although I have more experience working with trauma, anxiety, late-diagnosed neurodiverse identity (I too am late-diagnosed ADHD), chronic illness, and gender identity. I am particularly passionate about working to improve standards of care for the LGBTQ+ community.
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
£55.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
I do have a limited number of concession priced places available, and can lower my fee, with a bottom line of £40 in these cases. I do ask where possible that the £55 standard fee be considered.
When I work
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early morning | |||||||
| Morning | |||||||
| Early afternoon | |||||||
| Late afternoon | |||||||
| Evening |
Further information
BACP
Since my training began, I have been a member of the BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy), and as such, I follow their ethical guidelines.
In Person/Online
I work in person or online. A mixture of both can also be arranged if your circumstances are variable.
