Tom Abbott - MA DipHIC MBACP Registered
About me
“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.”
- Albert Camus
In these truly testing times, where our contact with loved ones has become increasingly limited, we are having to draw, ever more, on what is within. Whilst the world appears to buckle around us, disorientation has become the norm. However, where there is unrest, there is opportunity. Counselling can be that bridge to stability and peace within, and a life fully lived.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I moved my practice online (via Zoom, or telephone) back in March. Until I feel it is safe enough to return to in-person work I will continue working in this way for the foreseeable future. I have found it to be equally effective.
“Sometimes, all you need is permission to feel. Sometimes, what causes the most pain is actually the attempt to resist feeling, or the shame that grows up like thorns around it.”
- Olivia Laing, The Lonely City
I feel that counselling becomes a catalyst for change when you are being truly heard.
I am here to listen.
I provide a space for you to start looking at the reasons and root causes of the issues that have brought you to counselling in the first place. It might be the loss of a loved one, the breakdown of a relationship, a tendency towards self-destruction, a short or long history of depression, a rising anxiety, that brings you into counselling. It may even be a simple curiosity, a wish to understand yourself better. In any case, and for whatever reason, counselling aspires to help guide you through by providing a safe and confidential space from which to do so.
As a counsellor, my aim is to help shine a light on your past, perhaps on areas that have been in the dark for too long, so that we can experience how your present is impacted by your past, and consequently make the necessary adjustments. My role involves a creativity that endeavours to assist you in coming to terms with your story, feeling more autonomous in the choices you make, and ultimately more empowered.
I am here to help in your process of coming to terms with things, so that you can start to live a fuller life; more aware, more alert, and more alive.
“If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive.”
- Audre Lorde
Training, qualifications & experience
I have a Diploma in Humanistic and Integrative Counselling from the Bath Centre for Psychotherapy and Counselling (BCPC). I adopt an integrative approach to my work, meaning I bring a variety of therapeutic models and methods together in a cohesive and fluid manner. I am a member of the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) and abide by its Code of Ethics and attend regular supervision with a qualified supervisor to ensure my counselling work is both ethical and effective.
I am very interested in creativity – particularly writing, which I have studied at post-graduate level – and will always encourage an explorative and creative approach to the understanding and unveiling of ones own sense of self.
- Diploma in Humanistic and Integrative Counselling (BCPC)
- Foundation Certificate in Counselling and Psychotherapy (BCPC)
- Masters in Creative Writing (Bath Spa University)
I have six years experience of working in short and long-term counselling with, but by no means limited to, the following issues:
- Abuse
- Addiction
- Anxiety
- Attachment
- Bereavement
- Depression
- Grief
- Life stages
- Loss
- Low self-confidence
- Low self-esteem
- Relationships
- Self-harm
- Sexuality
- Stress
- Suicidal thoughts
- Trauma
Member organisations
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
BACP is one of the UK’s largest professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy. Therapists registered with the Association fall into a number of different membership categories such as Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP and Registered Member MBACP (Accred), each standing for different levels of training and experience. MBACP (Accred) and MBACP (Snr Accred) members have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by the Association.
Registered members can be found on the BACP Register, which was the first register to achieve Accredited Voluntary Register status issued by the Professional Standards Authority. Individual Members will have completed an appropriate counselling and/or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but will not appear on the BACP Register until they've progressed to Registered Member MBACP status.
All members are bound by a Code of Ethics & Practice and a Complaints Procedure. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
Accredited register membership
Accredited Register Scheme
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
Prices are per fifty minute appointment.
- £45 per session.
- Concessionary rates might be available. Please enquire.
Concessions offered for
Further information
Contact me to see if there are any concessionary slots available.
