Elizabeth Crawford

I am available on weekdays and occasionally in the evenings or weekends.

Hello! I have 17 years experience of working with children, young people and adults. Before becoming a counsellor, I worked in a number of roles, including primary school teacher and support worker for survivors of abuse. My passion has always been to help others. After qualifying, I soon realised that many people want and need more than empathy; they need tools and strategies as well as an understanding of why they feel or behave in certain ways. I have studied the mind and body extensively in order to be able to offer psychoeducation alongside my usual counselling and many clients have told me how useful this has been to them.

I can support you through issues involving anxiety, depression, relationships, study/employment, grief, post-traumatic symptoms, OCD and many other general worries. 

Asking for help can be the hardest first step, but if you need a space to safely off-load, take time to breathe and then find a path to recovery, please do contact me.

I usually like to have a quick chat with you on the phone to establish the main reasons for you wanting to have counselling, but this is not obligatory if you don't like to speak on the phone. I also usually email my counselling agreement, privacy notice and a sheet for your contact details to be completed before the first session. If email is not possible, we can go through them in our first session. 

I understand that it can be difficult for some people to get to a therapist, so I endeavour to offer other solutions such as WhatsApp, Zoom, or telephone counselling. For the times when I can offer counselling at my home, please be aware that I have a small dog. He is friendly, but please do let me know if dogs are a problem for you. Also, I work from home in Caton, not Lancaster, so you may need transport to get to me.

I offer one-off, weekly, fortnightly or occasional sessions to fit in with your needs.

Some people feel they need to prepare for each session - if that helps you, then that's fine; sometimes just coming with a blank mind and seeing what comes out is equally beneficial. 

I generally don't use assessments, but I can if you have used them before and feel they help. I tend to just ask you to talk in more detail about what has brought you to counselling and what you feel you want to achieve. The sessions are not set in stone - I will try to fit in with what helps you the best.