A helping hand to support you through life’s challenges towards a greater understanding
Welcome and thank you for visiting my website
My name is Sharon, and I am a counsellor providing both short and long term therapy to individuals (over the age of 18) and couples in Leicestershire. I support my clients by offering a safe and confidential environment without fear of judgement to help you explore and make sense of the feelings and issues you may be experiencing. I am a registered member of the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) and offer an integrative counselling approach. I can provide counselling in my counselling rooms in Broughton Astley, Leicestershire or online via Zoom, for those clients who are unable to or are too busy to travel.
We all experience times of difficulty in our lives, when events or relationships feel overwhelming, or we can feel a loss of direction or purpose. Talking to a trained professional helps us make sense of those challenging times and offers a way through them, moving towards a better understanding of ourselves and our feelings.
Prior to working as a Counsellor I previously owned my own business for 15 years, I then after some reflection made a difficult decision and decided to make a career change. I re-trained and after 3 years of training qualified as an Advanced Psychotherapeutic Counsellor. I loved the opportunity it offered to support others and commenced my own private practice in 2018.
I have worked as a Counsellor for a number of organisations including Charities, Private companies, Universities as well as private practice. I also undertook further training in Couple Counselling, Solution Focused Therapy and Online Therapy.
Making the decision to see a counsellor is a big step to take - but it can be a positive one. Please read on to find out more about how I could help you.
How can counselling help?
As an integrative Counsellor I am able to adapt a variety of approaches and techniques to meet your needs. I offer short as well as long term therapy conducting my sessions by either face to face in our offices or online.
I can offer you a safe, confidential environment without fear of judgment to help you explore and make sense of the difficult feelings and issues you may be experiencing at the moment. I will help you gain clarity and insight into the difficulties you are experiencing, working towards understanding and making sense of the constantly changing world around you.
Together we will explore your inner thoughts and feelings, searching the past to discover where the unwanted thoughts and behaviours may have originated from and, in turn, support current personal growth, self-esteem and empowerment.
Speak in Confidence
Counselling takes place in a safe, supportive and confidential environment where you can openly share your thoughts and feelings with a trained professional. I will listen with sensitivity, and empathy allowing you to express yourself without fear of judgement.
A problem shared...
Struggles with relationships, anxiety, panic attacks, mood swings, or depression are common challenges in everyday life. Counselling provides tools to help you understand the root of these difficulties and work toward managing or resolving them.
Make better, healthier new choices
By working together, I can help you gain deeper insight into the challenges you are facing, help you to understand why you continue with disruptive repetitive behaviours and help you make healthier, more positive choices for the future.
What issues can counselling help with?
The areas of counselling I can support you with include:
Abortion
Abuse
Anxiety (specific and general)
Bereavement
Depression
Divorce and separation
Emotional issues
Family
Low moods
Panic attacks
Pregnancy-related issues
PTSD
Relationships
Self-esteem
Self-harm
Shyness and social phobias
Stress
Trauma
The areas of counselling I can support couples with include:
Communication
Family Life
Infidelity
Improving the relationship
Separation
Trust
Get in touch
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about how counselling works, or to arrange an
appointment. You can also call me on 07434987427 if you would prefer to leave a message or speak to me first.
I am happy to discuss any queries or questions you may have prior to arranging an appointment.
Frequently asked questions
Counselling is usually a good way to help with a current problem; something that can be discussed and options explored. Over a certain number of weeks the understanding of the problem improves and a way forward becomes clear. Psychotherapy often describes work that goes a bit deeper, towards more substantial life issues and problems having a deeper effect on the client’s life. Psychotherapy often requires a long-term approach, so the number of sessions can be open-ended until you feel you have achieved your goals.
Which option is most suitable depends on the client and the difficulties they are facing. In some cases counselling works well as an ongoing, longer term option - or psychotherapy can manage to resolve an issue in just a few sessions.
How long a period of counselling lasts will vary from person to person and depend on the depth of the issues they are facing. For some people a couple of sessions helps to bring their problems into focus, and they feel ready to move forward; other problems may require more of an open-ended approach.
Before we begin any work we will agree on the number of sessions we’ll undertake, and at the end of that number review our progress. As long as we both agree further therapy will be of benefit to you, sessions can continue.
My aim is to offer a first appointment - known as an initial assessment - within 1-2 weeks. Then we would arrange a set number of counselling sessions to take place at the same time every week, that is convenient for you and where I have availabity. How quickly these sessions can begin will depend on the availabity of that free ‘slot’.
Everything that is said within the counselling room is private - this is one of the main ways counselling and psychotherapy differ from talking to a friend or relative. Once you are comfortable with the format of weekly sessions and the safe space they provide, you will find the freedom to speak in confidence is of great value.
Note there are some situations where by law I have to inform certain authorities such as if there is a risk to yourself or a third party, then my duty of care to you would mean I am unable to keep total confidentiality. Breaking confidentiality is very rare though and possible circumstances are discussed at the beginning of therapy.
When commencing counselling some nervousness and anxiety is understandable but a key aspect of therapy is that you should feel free to talk about any issues you feel are important to you. Having someone else with you can make opening up more difficult especially if they are connected with the issue, this is why if you do wish a friend or relative with you they may attend for a short time at the beginning of the first session, however, for couple counselling, couples will attend together for the duration of the full session unless prior agreement is sought.
What my clients say...
My location
I work from private counselling rooms located in Broughton Astley, Leicestershire and am easily accessible from the Leicester and Leicestershire areas. I am positioned approximately 25 minutes from Leicester city centre and from the M1, I am 7.4 miles distance from Junction 21 and 6.5 miles from junction 20.
My counselling room is comfortable, private and offers a relaxing and calming environment. I will provide detailed location details when we arrange our counselling session.
Fees & availability
Sessions are 50 minutes duration, which can be undertaken face to face at my counselling rooms or online.
Prices are £60 per session for individuals aged 18 and over and £75 per session for couples,
You may not know it, but you’ve already taken the first step...
Making the decision to contact a counsellor or psychotherapist can feel daunting and confusing, taking this first step is a step towards a better future. People often struggle with mental health issues, personal crises, or relationship problems far longer than is healthy and recognising that resolving a problem requires professional help is actually the first step towards improving your life.