Lilian Power Counselling Psychology

About Counselling Psychology

Counselling Psychology in Ipswich, Suffolk, East Anglia: About Counselling Psychology

Many of us get confused about the differences between counselling, counselling psychology and psychotherapy. All of them are talking therapies, and at their most basic, provide a safe space for the client/patient to find out about themselves and work out how to dig themselves out of the difficulties they are in with the help of a skilled 'outsider'.
Where there are differences,it's probably as much about the depth and direction of the training for each of them as the way in which they work. Counselling Psychologists and Registered psychotherapists are post-graduates who have had an extensive training and are thus more able to explore issues in depth and contribute a more research-based perspective to the talking therapy they provide.
I work with a wide range of adult clients to help them get a better sense of what makes them tick and to face whatever is bothering them. I do that using a combination of therapeutic techniques but informed predominantly by a psychodynamic perspective and an understanding of psychological development.
What that means briefly is that I try with my clients to understand what has made them the sort of people they are: how they have learnt to express or repress emotions,how they interpret other people's behaviour and the effect their behaviour can have on themselves and others.
Shedding a clear light on ourselves can not only illuminate what is going on but also point a way forward to change the way we are, so we can free ourselves from feelings, thoughts and behaviour inherited from past difficulties.(If you press the 'Let's Talk'button in the menu bar, you will see some examples of the way that sort of analysis works.)
My patients come with very diverse problems.
Sometimes the presenting issue is about difficulties in relationships at work or at home or socially.
Or they may want to talk about how they feel about themselves, hating the way they are but not sure how to move on.
Frequently these issues have led to depression or anxiety and panic attacks which has made them feel even more stuck.
And people come having faced traumatic incidents in their lives which they thought they had dealt with but which somehow they can't forget.
Or they may have a very specific and focussed issue that they need to talk through in depth with an independent person so that they can get some support with the problem and find a way through a very complex or intractable set of circumstances.

Quite often, I will work with people for a short-term and limited contract. That is nearly always the case for patients who come to me from an Employee Assistance Programme. Other times, we work in an open-ended way, regularly exploring what is needed and checking to see if the client feels that is what they are getting. It is, in my view, crucially important that clients feel they are in the driving seat, can go at the speed which feels right for them and stop when they are ready.

5^th September 2010			Tel: 01473 741780 click here to email

www.lilianpower.co.uk