Counselling

    There are two complementary strategies for improving the human condition. One is to relieve what is negative in life; the other is to strengthen what is positive. Mainstream psychology focuses largely on the first strategy; Positive Psychology emphasizes the second”

– Martin Seligman.

A word about counselling

These strategies, central to Positive Psychology, fit easily into a ‘ResourcefulYou’ philosophy; addressing what is negative and defining what is positive, what you already have and working out what you need now.

So-called ‘Talking Therapies’ have been around since time immemorial and although it’s hard to pinpoint exactly why they can be so beneficial, putting it in simple terms… talking helps.

Counselling is about having space and time to express your thoughts and feelings.  Naming these thoughts and feelings and speaking them out loud can give you a greater sense of understanding, clarity – and ownership.  Remember, we are social beings. It is in our nature to talk to others about our lives!

Self-help tools and strategies abound and are easily accessed through the internet, for example.  There are good resources out there; based on evidence, clear and helpful.  But none is directly and specifically about you and your circumstances. You may relate to the issues and grasp what you ‘should’ be doing – but making real and lasting changes in your life by yourself can be challenging (especially if you have old, negative self-beliefs).

The beauty of counselling is that you don’t have to.

It’s not just about thoughts, feelings and behaviour…

We exist as holistic systems.  What you eat and drink, the quality and quantity of your sleep, what work you do, your family life, how you interact with the environment, what you love doing, hate doing etc etc – all of these aspects of your life have an impact on your psychological and physical well being; positive, negative, a mixture… it’s all significant.

A word about the counselling relationship

Central to a successful outcome is the therapeutic relationship between you and your counsellor/therapist (interchangeable terms here).  We’ll get a good sense of ‘fit’ after the first session or two.  If for any reason it’s ‘not working’, don’t worry – we have a good network and will be able to refer you on if this seems the right thing to do.  Getting the help you need is the number one priority.