BENEFITS OF COUNSELLING
At it's most fundamental, counselling is a process whereby you talk with someone who is entirely focused on you - and whose skilled use of questioning and reflection can enable you to come to your own answers from within. This process can be immensely empowering and life-changing.
People come to counselling for many reasons. If you are experiencing difficult emotions - whether it be sadness, anger, fear, anxiety, grief, stress.... counselling can help.
If you feel stuck in some aspect of your life, or are feeling overwhelmed by your situation, speaking confidentially to someone can give a huge sense of relief.
And you don't need to be in crisis to benefit from counselling. Much like undertaking "professional development" having counselling can help you to grow and change personally. This "personal development" can enable you to live a more fulfilling life and feel more at ease in yourself.
You can opt for short term focused work of 4-6 sessions, or you may wish to have an open ended approach to work in depth on long-standing issues.
Difference between Counselling and Psychotherapy
This is a question I get asked a lot. There is no clear-cut answer and there is much overlap. However, counselling tends to be short term to work with an issue that is occurring currently in one's life. Psychotherapy tends to be longer term looking more at underlying childhood experiences and how these have impacted who you are and how find it being in the world. The relationship between client and therapist is very important, and psychotherapy is a great way to explore your relational patterns.
Brain - Body - Breath - Relationship
Brain, Body, Breath and Relationship are four spheres that I take into consideration in my client work. I firstly endeavour to find out what types of approach my clients are interested in trying. I have become very interested in the autonomic nervous system and Stephen Porges' Polyvagal Theory and how this applies to therapy. Many clients find that some basic education can really benefit an understanding of what is going on inside. I can offer mindful breathing practice and breathwork within our sessions. I offer gentle ways to explore body feelings and sensations using trauma-informed processes.
I enjoy being outdoors, so have trained in Walk and Talk therapy which I sometimes offer on Dartmoor (Haytor area) or Dartington.
Email: info@audreycooper.co.uk or Call: 07849392635