Counsellor & Psychotherapist in Wokingham and Bracknell near Reading
Welcome
Hello, I’m Sarah. Welcome to my website specialising in Adult Individuals and Couples counselling & psychotherapy in Wokingham and Bracknell near Reading.
Are you suffering from stress, anxiety or experiencing disturbed sleep? Maybe you're feeling down or depressed and have lost interest in the things that you used to enjoy? Is a relationship going wrong and you want to get it back on track to a happier place or need to break free from it? Do you lack confidence and wish that you had better self-esteem? Have you experienced trauma or abuse and it is affecting how you live your life now? Have you suffered a bereavement or life event and have been left with feelings of no control over your life?
It may well be that more than one of those questions apply to you; If you are exhausted from worrying and looking for answers, feel ‘stuck’ and just want someone who will listen, understand your situation without judgement and help you to navigate through this difficult time to a better place, then I can help.
I aim to build a therapeutic relationship with you that is unique to you and offers what you need. I offer a safe and supportive space where we can explore coping strategies for the situation you find yourself in and a path towards a future that is either free from the anxiety and stress that you are facing now or at least a place where it is more manageable.
As an experienced BACP Accredited Integrative Counsellor, I use a range of counselling and psychotherapy therapies to work alongside you as you journey towards increased self-awareness, greater compassion for yourself and ultimately feelings of control over your life. I use my counselling approaches for individuals and couples interchangeably (couples work tends to be more proactive and solution focused) so that the therapy meets your needs and goals and moves at a pace that is comfortable to you.
My belief is that we are the sum of our experiences and so I find it helpful to look at what has gone on in your past and what is going wrong now (as well as what is going right!). Relationships with parents and childhood experiences influence our future relationships and by understanding the subtle or maybe stark influences from the past, I hope that you will be empowered to find those elusive answers and perhaps new thinking and behaviours that are more helpful.
I am a BUPA Recognised therapist.
Experience
The therapy can be short term or open ended and, with regular reviews, you can ensure that you are getting the most from our sessions. I have worked both short (6 weeks) and longer term (a year or more) with many Individuals and Couples facing difficulties including:
- Affairs and betrayals
- Anxiety
- Attention Deficit (Hyperactivity) Disorder (ADHD & ADD)
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- Attachment issues
- Bereavement and loss
- Career changes (retirement, redundancy etc)
- Childhood trauma
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Emotional abuse
- Health issues
- Low self esteem or self-worth
- Narcissism
- Pregnancy loss
- Relationship difficulties
- Stress
- Suicidal feelings
- And many more
In addition to my private practice, I am a counsellor at a BACP Accredited Counselling service in Camberley.
I previously led a bereavement support service in Wokingham where I was a supervisor and ran bereavement training courses. I have over 20 years of supporting clients through their unique experience of grief and loss. I also understand that we experience grief responses (despair, identity-loss, loss of purpose and direction) for various life events; relationship break-ups, divorce, career changes, retirement, empty nests, illness and disability etc and so I often use my bereavement expertise in my broader work as a counsellor.
I have many years experience of working with children on the Autistic Spectrum (in a teaching setting). This experience has enabled me to understand and empathise with different mindsets and perceptions of the world; I understand the social, emotional and practical challenges faced when living with ASD and I ensure that my counselling sessions are accessible whilst being mindful of sensory sensitivity.
I am an Accredited member with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and as such, I adhere to their Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling. As an Accredited Registered therapist, my practice, qualifications and therapeutic approach have undergone scrutiny through the BACP Accreditation and Registration process and they acknowledge that I meet their higher standard as a competent, ethical and independent practitioner.
Different ways of delivering counselling and costs
I am a qualified face-to-face, online (secure video conferencing) and telephone counsellor. The remote therapy (using Zoom and telephone) is only available to people in the U.K. due to different national laws. I can be flexible between approaches; offering a hybrid of face-to-face and remote working to meet any changing needs and I am also able to accommodate shift working.
For Individuals counselling, I charge £60 per 50 minute session. For Couples counselling, I charge £75 per 50 minute session or £125 per 90 minute session (this needs to be agreed in advance). I offer an initial session at a reduced fee, so that you can be sure that I am the right counsellor for you. I accept payment on the day by cash or bank transfer.
Wokingham and Bracknell Counsellor & Psychotherapist
My therapy practice is based both in Wokingham and Bracknell, Berkshire and is within easy reach of Ascot, Camberley, Crowthorne, Earley, Reading, Sandhurst and Woodley. There are bus routes from both Bracknell, Wokingham and Reading train stations. There is ample parking.
Testimonials
Sarah was an absolute pleasure to work with. She helped us tremendously, providing us with focused and productive sessions. Sarah was incredibly skilled at challenging us and using communication and various activities to help us work through difficult conversations. After our sessions, we felt more connected and better understood each other. We highly recommend Sarah! (A and L)
I wanted to reach out to express that working with you was extremely beneficial in saving me from an insidious cycle of self-destructive behaviours. I feel that I would have been unable to do this without the benefit of your counsel - or that it would have been significantly less likely to have happened. You taught me a lot about emotional and situational awareness in a very short amount of time, and I have moved forward to use these tools in such a way that has led to my continued recovery from severe substance abuse. In the most professional delivery possible: thank you very much for providing an extraordinarily excellent service. :) (T)
Thank you for all you’ve done for us through the last few months, I don’t feel like we would have progressed so much without your help and support. You really helped us with some useful analogies and guidance. It’s reassuring to know you're there if anything changes, however I hope that’s not the case. (U and S)
From an online client : One of the biggest things I explored was my experiences of nurture as a child. This is not something I had gained from previous counselling. Sarah used a range of techniques to help me explore these deep-rooted thoughts and feelings that I had, through talking about them, theories, and more visual exercises which she demonstrated and worked through with me by sharing these on her screen. (P)
Thank you Sarah for all your support and guidance. Your kind and gentle approach enabled me to work through some very difficult issues I was experiencing. You have provided me with strategies to deal with situations and the confidence to be and believe in myself. I now understand myself better than ever before and found the sessions enlightening. I felt I was in a safe place with you and could talk through everything and anything that I needed to. (N)
You can read more testimonials at Further testimonials
What are the next steps?
You’ve taken the first step by recognising you need support and looking at a counselling website. It’s important that you take time to find the right counsellor for you, so have a look at my other web pages, particularly the Individuals and Couples pages where I give greater detail of how our work can bring benefits. If I seem like ‘a right fit’, then contact me by email or telephone with no obligation. You don't have to be alone in this.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Wokingham RG40
Bracknell RG42