Counselling
By Lorraine Ireland Of Mind & Health Matters

Whatever Your Problem Come and Talk it Over In Confidence

What is Counselling ?

Counselling is based on change – change of perspective, circumstances behaviour or coping abilities. Counselling gives you an opportunity to share your problems with someone skilled at listening and interpreting experience. It can help you to understand how past experience and current behaviour may be linked, and can lead to a more creative understanding of present circumstances.

A Counsellor helps to identify choices for your future and supports their implementation. The aim of the Counsellor is to help you to recognize how you would realistically like your life to be, and then help you to actualize or achieve these aims. In a situation which cannot be changed or is beyond your control, then the change may consist of adjusting to your new circumstances.

How can Counselling help ?

At times we may feel unhappy or burdened with life`s pressures or problems yet feel we should cope and find a solution on our own. Sometimes we are unable to do this, yet do not know where to turn and may suffer in silence. This is rarely helpful to us and those around us. Counselling provides an opportunity to talk in confidence with a person outside the situation in a safe place without judgement, enabling exploration of thoughts and feelings about oneself. It offers positive help to those who want to make changes in their lives and come to terms with difficulties of any nature.

Sometimes people come to counseling to address certain behaviours which are affecting their day to day living.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is essential to a positive working relationship with a Counsellor.

Code of Ethics

I am a Member of the BACP (British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy) and adhere to their Code and Ethics of Practice.

My Experience and Philosophy

I am a professionally trained Counsellor and specialise in the area of Addictions. The main theories I practice are Integrative,Person Centred, Pschodynamic, Rational Emotive Behaviour (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), Solution Focused and Neuro Linguistic Programming.

When working in the area of addictions I utilise Prochaska & DiClimente`s Cycle of Change, which is a valuable tool to ascertain progress and realistic goals.

Person Centred therapy is an excellent base for therapy which incorporates Carl Rogers core conditions of empathy, unconditional positive regard and genuineness. It is my belief that every person is “unique and special” and has the right to make choices about their life that reflect their needs and values.

Pshychodynamic therapy helps clients to explore past issues, sometimes as far back as very early childhood, dynamics within family upbringing, or non-family upbringing, and the relevance and impact they have on their beliefs, thoughts, somtimes negative thinking patterns, sometimes low self worth and behaviours in the present. A great understanding of self can be achieved, which can often free the client to work in the here and now with a much broader awareness and new found sense of direction and future choice. The past does not have to equal the future.

Rational Emotive Behaviour Therepy (REBT) is a practical, action-orientated approach to coping with problems and enhancing personal growth. REBT places a good deal of its focus on the present; on currently held attitudes, painful emotions and maladaptive behaviours that can sabotage a fuller experience of life. The starting point for REBT is the view developed by Albert Ellis, its founder that “unhealthy emotions are not caused by the bad things that happen to us, rather they are caused by the irrational thoughts we have about those events”.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is very useful for addressing negative thought patterns and beliefs which in turn affect behaviour, and sometimes health and wellbeing.

Solution Focused Therapy works well for clients who have either explored issues connected to their past, know all the reasons as to why they are the way they, but experience difficulty at even beginning to facilitate change, or are simply unhappy with the choices they have been making for whatever reason. Solution Focused therapy which focuses on Solutions rather than problems, helps the client to focus on what they want rather than what they don`t want, exploring future possibilities, options and how to achieve realistic goals

Last but not least, I find the use of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) can be used effectively in therapy to install positive changes, self development and assertiveness. NLP is based on the model of excellence.

Neuro : refers to the mind and how we organize our mental life
Linguistic : is about language, how we use it and how it affects us
Programming : is about our sequence or repetitive behaviour and how we act with purpose

Listed below are a few NLP Statements:

“ There is no failure, only feedback; no mistakes, only results; no errors, only learning. Every experience may be viewed as an unprecedented opportunity to learn. ”

“It is not what happens to you that matters. It is what you do with what happens to you that determines whether you experience the world as “good” or “bad”.”

“If you always do what you`ve always done, you`ll always get what you`ve always got. If what you are doing isn`t working try doing then something else. ”

The training I have undertaken enables me to accept your feelings in a non-judgmental manner.

For Appointments or further information please telephone Lorraine Ireland on 01384 – 878264.