About me
Hello!
Please watch my 10 minute Intro video here: https://teawithsteve.co.uk
Choosing a therapist is an odd business, since you're trying to work out whether you can talk to someone before you've ever met them. For this reason, it's probably worth saying what I think therapy might be useful for.
I don't think therapy turns us into different or better people per se, whatever the profession tends to promise. What I do think it does, and this matters rather more for our happiness and wellbeing, is help us understand ourselves properly: who we are, what we actually want, and what really runs our lives, for better and for worse. Once we can see that clearly, we can often stop fighting ourselves quite so hard, and life tends to become a good deal more liveable.
I bring twenty years of experience and training to this process , a good deal of curiosity and care, as well as many pots of delicious tea.
RATES:
Weekly slots
– £80 daytime
– £90 evening/weekend
Fortnightly slots
– £90 daytime
– £100 evening/weekend
Ad-hoc sessions
– £100 daytime
– £110 evening/weekend
Couples
– £120 daytime
– £150 evening/weekend
You can reach me on WhatsApp (07804197605) or via email.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Training, qualifications & experience
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:
-Private Practice (Coaching/Psychotherapy) and Consultancy - 2008 to present
-ACT 1 & 2 with Steven C. Hayes - 2018
-EMDR: Principles, Procedures & Protocols - 2017
-Relate CPCAB (Levels 4&5)
-Schema Therapy Training and ISST Accreditation - 2013 to 2014
-Post Graduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy - 2011 (King's College London)
-Professional Certificate in MBCT/MBSR for groups & individuals - 2010
-NHS General Practice Counsellor/Psychotherapist (5 years) - 2008 to 2013
-MA in Integrative Psychotherapy (mainly psychodynamic) - 2008 (LMU)
-Addictions counselling training & 3 years volunteering experience - 2007
-Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling - 2005 (Mary Ward Centre)
-Samaritans Volunteer training & 10 years experience - 1995
-BA in English Literature - 1991 (Cambridge University)
SHORT PERSONAL BIO:
I was born and received my primary education in South Africa, emigrating to the UK in 1986 at the age of 15. After graduating from University, I worked as a teacher and later as a lecturer. I retrained to become a psychotherapist in my early 30s.
Please feel free to get in touch either by email or telephone (07804197605) if you would like to find out anything else about me or the kind of therapy I offer.
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
£80.00 - £100.00
Additional information
FEES:
RATES:
Weekly slots
– £80 daytime
– £90 evening/weekend
Fortnightly slots
– £90 daytime
– £100 evening/weekend
Ad-hoc sessions
– £100 daytime
– £110 evening/weekend
Couples
– £120 daytime
– £150 evening/weekend
I do have a few concessionary spaces on top of this, but there may be a longer wait for these. Please get in touch and let's see what we can do if the cost of weekly private therapy is a genuine barrier to you.
When I work
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Further information
TESTIMONIALS FROM FORMER CLIENTS [pseudonyms used*]
"I've really appreciated your care, warmth, and professionalism. You're just what the doctor ordered, and this doctor will certainly be recommending you to family and friends from now on!"
-Dipesh, 40, GP
--
"Steve, you've been so incredibly helpful to me, thank you! I can't believe how far I've come in just a few months. When I first came to see you all of this anxiety and OCD stuff was keeping me literally IMPRISONED in my own home. Never thought I'd be out and about again, often with struggles and anxiety, but what a change. I know I've still got some way to go, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now. In fact, I might even be standing in that light, and it feels good."
-Mary, 45, Full Time Mum & Children's Book Illustrator
--
"I feel much more in touch with myself, my own needs and emotions (it's been a very tearful year but in a good way!), and am more comfortable being assertive, vulnerable and asking for help. My relationships with family and friends feel more stable and open, and people have commented on how calm and relaxed I seem - I generally feel more self-confident. To top it off, and completely out of the blue in the autumn I met someone who is now my boyfriend. The connection I feel with him is stronger than anything I've felt and even though it's early and he's based over in Milan I have a real sense that we're going build a future together. So thank you for helping me lay the foundations that have enabled all this to happen! Of course it's not all perfect and in particular I still have a strong self-critical voice, but it's been amazing to feel this sense of growth and experience a general sense of purpose and excitement about life."
-Dan, 30, Qualitative Researcher
--
"I realised I never really got around to thanking you or saying a proper goodbye after our last session.
You might be interested to know that I am doing very well these days. I changed jobs in July and am so much happier in my new job....The big news though is that we are expecting our first baby (a boy) in Feb! I have been assigned a midwife who specialises in mental health am still taking a low dosage of citalopram but so far so good and feeling excited!...
Thanks for being a great therapist! You really were the best I've had."
-Tiya, Data Analyst (30)
--
"Steve, here's a little text for your to stick on your website/wherever. I really appreciate everything.
As a young male I found it difficult to admit to myself that I suffered from depression. I'd often tell myself to 'man-up' or to just have a few beers and get on with it. Eventually I sought professional help and realised that finding the right psychotherapist was difficult, but soon enough I met Steve and very quickly felt that I had nothing to be ashamed of. I became more at ease with my emotions and began to understand the effect it has on me.
Despite my wanting to pay for multiple sessions every week, Steve suggested that in my condition, I would benefit most from just one session per week. He was absolutely right. He introduced me to some simple but effective mindfulness techniques and also suggested little things that I can do to find a happier sense of being on a day-to-day basis. I'd gone from fighting my emotions to embracing and nourishing them.
I'm now in a happier place and will be using a couple of Steve's beautifully simple techniques to ease my way through the negative moments in my life. I know I will want Steve's support on-and-off for many years, but thanks to him, I know I am able to face my daily mental challenges alone.
Thanks for everything!"
-Sahan, Technology Consultant
--
“It was very difficult for me to find a therapist that I could get on with and talk to easily. After trying 3/4 different people, I was extremely lucky to meet Steve. He has a warm approach, with a lot of 'no nonsense' sensibility thrown in and this works very well for me. I would recommend him to anyone looking for help.”
-Rishal, Solicitor (34)
--
“I began seeing Steve when I was at a very low ebb, and have been with him for two years now. A lot of things have changed for me, and I have him to thank for listening and helping me get clearer on a lot of things that have been bothering me for a while.”
-Uma, Graphic Designer (29)
--
"Thank you so much again for your warm ways of listening, I have found your approach very sharp and helpful in terms of identifying my main vulnerabilities and coping mechanisms, as well as giving me the tools I now need to get a bit closer to the real me and the life I need to be living."
-Anna, Community Care Solicitor (32)
--
“The thing about Steve is that he really cares about you but also has a brilliant mind which I find a privilege to access. His approach and methods are wonderfully creative and if you add to that his humanity, you've got yourself a rather special therapist.”
-Mimi, Artist (50)
--
“As soon as I met Steve and started talking to him, I felt at ease and comfortable. I had never had any therapy before, and was extremely anxious. But he immediately made me feel he was listening and understood me. He gives me time to think about what I want to say, and even if I repeat myself over and over again- which I do - he is patient and asks very pertinent questions. It has been a life -changing opportunity to me to have therapy with Steve, and helped me immeasurably.”
-Lucy, Full Time Mum (32)
--
“Steve is a compassionate therapist, who always listens and encourages me to think deeply about what I am saying. He is very patient and always makes me feel that my problems aren't stupid or even ridiculous. In the last year since I started therapy with him, many things have changed in my life and I owe this all to Steve's help.”
-Chirag, Community Fundraiser (45)
--
"I have found Steve to be a very insightful and skilled therapist. He has the ability to help me understand myself better and also provides practical solutions to help me address my issues. I have had individual and group therapy on and off for more than 20 years and Steve is up there with the best. I recommend him unreservedly."
-George, Probationary Services Manager (62)
--
"Steve's sharp intellect, knowledge, humility along with a non judgemental approach and sensitive understanding of the human condition and it's complexities has helped me enormously through the years. I would highly recommend him to anyone."
-Beatrice, Musicologist (72)
[*Clients were all asked when giving testimonials to supply a pseudonym in order to protect their confidentiality.]
