Rachel Waller

I offer in person or online sessions between 9am and 6pm.

(I do not work on weekends)

I am a warm, dynamic and experienced Psychotherapeutic Counsellor. I aim to empower my clients towards a strengthened sense of self. This will help you feel better able to cope with life's challenges.

Anxiety, relationship difficulties, attachment issues and negative self image are often related to childhood trauma. I work gently to help you understand how your patterns were formed and how they can be changed through self-awareness and the experience of the trusting therapeutic relationship.

My ethos is Humanistic and my approach will be tailored to suit your individual needs and goals.  Not everyone responds to therapy in the same way, so we will work together to find what is right for you. Over the years I have had many people ask, "are you one of those therapists who makes their clients sit in silence for ages?" The short answer to that is, "no, unless you think you might find quiet thinking space helpful."

In the room, I will help you get to know yourself better by drawing awareness to the unique ways in which your thoughts, emotions, body sensations and behavioural patterns interact. Within the safe, therapeutic environment this can enable positive change at a deep level. If you are someone who remembers your dreams, we may also look at analysing what they mean to you.

I draw on the theoretical approaches of Carl Rogers (Person-Centred Therapy), Eugene Gendlin (Focussing), Carl Jung (Analytical Psychology), Elliott, Rice & Greenberg (Emotion-Focussed Therapy), amongst others, and contemporary trauma research to provide each client with a robust and coherent framework within which we can work together. Or, in layperson's terms: Counselling is far more than just listening, I use many psychological skills to provide you with professional support.

I work medium to long-term with individual adults.

My practice is inclusive. I work with sensitive awareness of diversity and complex power-dynamics.

Currently, I am offering weekly face-to-face therapy from the cosy and inviting rooms at New Road Psychotherapy Centre in central Brighton and Hove.

Research shows that the quality of the relationship between client and therapist is the primary agent for change, so it is important that you find a therapist who feels right for you.

At your first session we will go through what you are hoping for from therapy, and what I can offer, and I will gather some background information from you. The session is confidential, within legal and ethical limits.

At the end of the first session, I will email a written contract for you to consider, giving you time to think before you commit to further sessions.

The cost of the initial 50 minute session is the same as that of subsequent weekly sessions.