7 things I learned working with interpreters in the counselling room
7 things I learned working with interpreters in the counselling room
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How I end a counselling session well
How I end a counselling session well (and why those last few minutes matter) For the first few years as a counsellor, I found ending a counselling session difficult. I recently saw the Abunchoftherapists vlog about going to a counsellor whose session ended with the phrase ‘let’s leave it there’. It reminded me why those
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‘I felt robbed’: Perimenopause, isolation and how counselling can help
Reading this BBC article on early perimenopause took me straight back. I felt I had been robbed of something I did not even know I could lose. I started perimenopause at 40. It was a dark time. I was told I was depressed, but it did not feel like depression. Something was wrong and I
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Feeling lonely at uni?
Feeling lonely at uni? You are not broken. What helps and how counselling can support you Reading the recent BBC piece on student loneliness made me pause and reflect on what I hear so often in the therapy room. Halls, lectures and busy campuses can still feel quiet on the inside. Loneliness at uni is
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Losing My BACP Senior Accreditation
When a Title Is Taken: Losing My BACP Senior Accreditation Today I lose my Senior Accredited status with BACP. I have been a counsellor for 25 years. I have run my own practice for 25 years. Writing this feels strange. I did not plan to share this. I worried people would argue about SCoPEd. But
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World Mental Health Day: mental health in humanitarian emergencies
World Mental Health Day: mental health in humanitarian emergencies Today is World Mental Health Day. This year’s global focus is mental health in humanitarian emergencies and access to support. I have seen first-hand the distress, trauma and grief that war and famine create in emergency disasters. Before I became a counsellor, I worked as a
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Comparison is the thief of joy: finding your own path
Do you ever catch yourself scrolling, and suddenly feel a bit smaller?It’s a familiar knot in the stomach. Someone else is glossier, faster, tidier, happier. In a world where we can see everyone’s highlight reel, it’s easy to lose sight of our own lives. Young people tell me this all the time: “Everyone’s ahead.” It’s
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Starting Uni in Sheffield with Social Anxiety
With students starting Uni in Sheffield and beyound this week, here’s a helpful post on steadying social anxiety so you can find your feet.
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The Therapeutic Alliance: The Heart of Counselling
As I reflect on my years in the therapy room, one thread runs through every piece of work that genuinely helps: the relationship. Long before techniques or tools, it’s the quality of the therapeutic alliance—the felt sense of safety, trust and collaboration between us—that makes change possible. Research consistently shows that this relationship is a
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Reflective practice in counselling: using the Kolb Cycle
As therapists we’re taught to reflect, yet it’s easy to slip into fault-finding. We replay a session, feel cross with ourselves, and then repeat the same patterns. Reflective practice offers a kinder, more useful alternative: notice what happened, learn from it, and make a small change next time. One simple exercise I return to is
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How many clients should a counsellor see in a day?
How many clients should a counsellor see in a day? Short answer: there isn’t a one-size-fits-all number. Our ethical duty is to safeguard the quality of therapy and our fitness to practise. The BACP Ethical Framework doesn’t set a fixed limit; instead, it asks us to ensure our wellbeing is sufficient to sustain the quality of
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