Karen Proctor

Hello and welcome. I offer compassionate and non-judgemental counselling in a private and calm counselling room. Or, if you prefer, on-line or telephone counselling. Starting with a no-obligation, free 20-minute call, I aim to help you to better understand yourself, your relationships, your past and the present to reduce emotional distress and gain greater contentment or direction.

I am a qualified Counsellor with a Masters Degree in Integrative Counselling and a Certificate in Telephone and Online Counselling. Being a Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (Â鶹ԭ´´), I adhere to the highest professional standards, providing ethical, evidence-based counselling grounded in current best practice. I engage in regular supervision and continuous professional development.

I maintain an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Certificate.

I have spent over 30 years working in health services before training to become a therapeutic counsellor.

My Therapy Practice

As an Integrative Counsellor, my practice is to tailor counselling for your needs, using counselling approaches based on various therapeutic techniques.

You may or may not wish to identify goals. You may wish to gain insight or acceptance, develop coping mechanisms, find solutions or determine direction. You may be struggling to make sense of your emotions, thinking, circumstance or ways of doing things. Maybe you want to share something and feel truly heard, understood and valued. Or for you, it may be something else. And sometimes, it is hard to know what the issue is – something just doesn’t feel quite right.

My manner is respectful, calm and sensitive, grounded in relational person-centred counselling. Depending on your need and preference I may integrate other approaches and techniques including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Psychodynamic Therapy, Transactional Analysis and others as best suited to you.

My service is for adults and older teenagers. I offer quick access and various appointment times, including some weekdays and week evenings and Saturdays. Sessions are 50 minutes long.

My counselling room has accessible access and is on the ground floor. Car parking is available. It is located on a bus route and the nearest train station is a 20-minute walk.

Example of areas that I can support:

Relationship problems, anxiety, distress, stress, depression, bereavement, life changes, self-identity, menopause, domestic abuse, traumatic experiences, negative thinking, phobias, OCD, low self-esteem, self -worth, self-doubt, complex emotions and more.

Our sessions are yours to choose what to share and at a pace you are comfortable with. I will not direct or put pressure on you, though I will offer support and help you find a way forward. I am happy providing both short-term and long-term counselling. You decide on the number of sessions you wish to have.

I take your confidentiality and privacy seriously. I have a Privacy Policy, complying with the terms of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), ensuring the responsible and secure use of your data. I am registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office, abiding by the required data protection standards.

I understand that finding the right counsellor can feel challenging and the first step daunting. My no-obligation, confidential and free 20-minute initial discussion aims to help. You can ask about my counselling, its arrangements and briefly tell me about yourself and what has brought you to counselling. This will hopefully provide a sense of what counselling will be like and if you are comfortable with me ahead of booking a full session.

At the start of counselling, you will be asked to complete a Registration Form to collect necessary information. In addition, there is a consent form and an information booklet, including important aspects of our time together such as confidentiality. We will discuss its contents at our first session, which is charged at 50% and there will be time to answer any questions and to explore how we can work together moving forward.

This first session is also an opportunity to further explore your concerns, challenges, and any goals. You may initially not know what to say or where to start and that’s okay. I'll be with you as you think, share, remember and find the words, helping to gain awareness, clarity and direction.

Most importantly, this first session is about making sure you feel comfortable and supported as we begin your therapeutic journey.

Please contact me to arrange an initial call or to ask any questions.