Counselling & Psychotherapy in Banbury

Hello, my name is Sophia and I’m a counsellor and psychotherapist in Milcombe, Banbury, Oxfordshire.

The first time I visited a counsellor I had no idea what it was all about, I just felt I needed to talk to somebody and I wasn’t sure why.

Each time I’ve had counselling and psychotherapy, I’ve had the space to talk about what’s going on for me in my life. Each of my therapists has helped me to see patterns in my thinking and behaviour which me gave me the option to make change if I felt it was right for me.

We all experience life’s ups and downs, and sometimes we can have things on our minds which can interfere in us leading our lives the way we want to. Counselling and psychotherapy can be a way to break down these issues. Have a look at my About Me page for more about my qualifications and working experience.

I can offer you a calm and confidential space in which to talk over whatever it is that’s troubling you. Often people tell me that they don’t think their problem is serious enough to warrant counselling or psychotherapy, but I don’t believe that there’s anything too big or too small that they can’t help with. If there’s something on your mind that’s getting in the way of you leading your life the way you want to, then I believe it’s something worth addressing, and together we can look at whatever might be going on for you at the moment and how you can manage or change it.

My Approach

I’m an experienced person-centred and psychodynamic integrative counsellor and psychotherapist:

Person-Centred

Person-centred means I believe that you know yourself better than anyone so our sessions will be led by you. My aim is to help you explore your issues which will sometimes involve helping you to see things from a different angle. This means you can understand yourself better which means you see more choices of how you want to live your life.

Psychodynamic

Psychodynamic means I believe that everything we do in our present lives can be linked back to our past – our childhood and the main people in our lives at the time – even though we may not be aware of some things. We can look at where you learnt your values, whether you still agree with them, and whether they make your life better or worse. We can also look at what might be going on for you unconsciously.

Integrative

Using these two methods together gives you the choice of what you want to bring to the sessions, whilst gently and carefully looking at where these issues might stem from, so that you can decide how to move forward.

How can counselling & psychotherapy help?

As a counsellor and psychotherapist, I am not there to judge you, or to give you advice. As we explore together, you may come to your own conclusions about any changes you might want to make. I can point you in the direction of things I think might be helpful to you, but I won’t tell you what to do.

Whatever the theory, research has shown that what helps clients progress most is the therapeutic relationship between us because of the trust that is built. It’s so important that you’re satisfied with your choice of counsellor/psychotherapist, so contact me and we can have a chat to help you decide.

Some of the issues that counselling and psychotherapy can help with are:

Low self-esteem and lack of confidence

Depression

Anxiety

Panic attacks

Grief, bereavement and loss

Domestic abuse

Weight-related issues

Sexual, physical, emotional and mental abuse, past and present

Relationship difficulties (including couple counselling)

Work stress

Trauma

Self-harm

Suicidal thoughts

Sexual orientation

Bullying

Financial worries

Anger

Gender orientation

Phobias

Personality Disorders

The difference between counselling and psychotherapy

Counselling is usually short-term work which focuses on your patterns of behaviour and what’s going on for you at the moment. Psychotherapy does this too, but over a longer period of time and at a deeper level. It also looks at your past to see where these emotions and patterns of behaviour have come from.

Can I help?

I would be very happy to have a chat on the phone about your needs and how counselling/psychotherapy can help. Please feel free to call me on 07588 133728 or email me. Further details about my fees and where to find me can be found on the Contact Me page.