About me

There is often a misconception that counsellors are so wise that they have all the answers. I don’t sit in that chair opposite clients because I can regularly be found cross legged on top of a mountain under an all-seeing eye whilst meditatively stroking my beard… I can’t grow one for a start.

I am there because I was once lucky enough to have a counsellor who helped me so much that I wanted to be one. The work I undertook with him made me infinitely curious about my mind and my experience which over time turned into our minds and the collective human experience.

My logo is a solitary oak tree and is based on one of my favourite images: a lone oak standing in the middle of a field surrounded by beautiful countryside.

I loved this as an image long before I understood why. The sprawling, lush greenery of the open English countryside always instilled in me a sense of freedom, but I was particularly drawn to the sight of lone trees. Slowly over time the reasons why I was so drawn to them began to reveal themselves.

They remind me that, whilst no one is an island (we are all a sum of our caregivers, friends, children, culture and environment), we must ultimately all learn to stand alone. For me, one of the great paradoxes of life is that we are all 'alone together'. This can feel like a daunting prospect but I have found that the more I come to terms with this concept in my own life, the more I understand myself and can connect with deeper meaning to the experiences I have and the people I know.

Through my own personal experience as a client I found that working with a therapist who I connected with was incredibly liberating and enduring. Whilst it can take time and a committed investment some of the changes I have seen in myself include:

A better understanding about why I am who I am
An acceptance of myself as just another flawed human being
An understanding that everyone else is just like me; imperfect, trying to make their best way in life and subject to the full spectrum of emotion and experience as I am
An awareness that we shape our lives through the choices we make. Whilst not everything may be our fault, we are always responsible for how we react and the meaning we draw from our experience and place onto things