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At present, I have availability on Friday afternoons and Friday mornings in the New Year.  If you can let me know a time when we can schedule our initial free 20 minute chat that would be great.  I can ring any evening after 6.  This will be a chance for us to get to know each other a little and see if we make a good fit as counsellor and client.

My name is Rich, and I am a fully qualified counsellor following three and a half years of training from the Heartwood Centre for Psychotherapy and Counselling at Dartington College in Devon.

I am an accredited registrant with the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) and a registered member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¾«×¼×ÊÁÏ), adhering closely to the ethical standards of both organizations.

Additionally, I am a British Wheel of Yoga certified teacher (BWYdip) and have practiced mindfulness for over thirty years, which deeply informs my approach to counselling and well-being.

How can I help?

As a person-centred counsellor, I provide a warm, gentle and compassionate space where you can feel truly heard and supported. With an integrative approach, I draw on various counselling theories, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Transactional Analysis (TA), tailoring them to fit your unique needs. My extensive experience with Mindfulness practice allows me to blend Eastern and Western approaches to support your well-being and healing journey.

Face-to-Face, telephone or on-line

As my website explains, my counselling rooms are situated in Child Okeford and Ibberton, away from the distractions of daily life. 

If you prefer to work in nature,  then I offer 'Walk and Talk' sessions in Ibberton where you can enjoy the tranquillity of the extensive gardens as we explore your thoughts, feelings, and relationships.

I can also offer telephone and on-line counselling if that would suit you.

Types of Therapy

If you have a single issue you wish to focus on, then I offer short term courses of therapy where we work in a structured way working towards a specific goal.

I also offer longer term counselling that adapts to your evolving needs.  For clients who have an interest in Mindfulness I can make this the foundation of the therapy, and also include Buddhist psychology and Yoga philosophy if this is of interest to you.

My Approach

As an integrative counsellor with a person-centred approach, I am gentle, kind, and committed to understanding what lies beneath your dissatisfaction or distress. I believe that with the right support, we all have the natural ability to heal and reconnect with ourselves.

Your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours are valid responses to the challenges you’re facing. I don’t see you as an illness to be cured, but as a unique individual seeking guidance to rediscover your own path to healing. You are the expert on yourself, and my role is to provide a supportive, therapeutic space where you can explore and uncover your way forward.

Whatever you’re going through - no matter how heavy, painful, or uncomfortable it feels - I will listen without judgment. While I may never fully understand your experience, I will do my best to walk alongside you with empathy, curiosity, and care as your solutions come into view.

I don’t claim to have all the answers. Instead, I aim to be a compassionate companion on your healing journey, helping you find your footing again. In our work together, I bring authenticity, curiosity, humour, and warmth.

To support your growth, I may suggest activities or theories,  ask questions, or offer insights inspired by my professional training and life experience. I might also recommend small lifestyle changes to shift your perspective or aid your healing. Every session will be thoughtfully tailored to your needs, ensuring our work together feels meaningful and effective for you.

Mindful Therapy

If you have an interest in Mindfulness, then I can support you in developing the ability to exist peacefully and non-judgementally in the present moment. 

We can naturally let go of future worries and stop ruminating about the past. 

Mindfulness also allows us to learn to savour and appreciate the beauty of our moment to moment awareness, so that we can feel grateful and appreciative of the simple joys of life that we can so often overlook in our busy lives.

Starting Therapy

I offer a free twenty minute phone call so I can explain a little about how I work, you can ask some questions and we can see if we are a good match for each other as client and therapist. You will have the chance to explain what you are looking for from therapy, and I will explain what I have to offer and how I can help.

During our first session, we will begin by talking through our counselling contract together making sure that we both understand how to work safely, particularly in the area of confidentiality. We will then spend time getting to know each other further, beginning to explore the issues that have brought you to counselling. As we talk, I will start to form in my mind some ideas for how I can support you in your healing journey, which I will tentatively share with you at the end of our first session.

Moving Forward

Before our second session, I will spend time reflecting further on your distress and the issues you wish to work on, so that we can begin our second session by clarifying what we want to achieve and how we can begin our work.

At the beginning, the therapy tends to run more smoothly if you can attend weekly. However, as our work evolves you may find that a session every two weeks or even monthly becomes sufficient to allow your healing journey to continue.

Occasionally, we may agree tasks or ideas for you to explore between sessions to help accelerate your healing process.

Reviewing Progress and Ending

I normally work in blocks of roughly six sessions, at which point we can spend some time reviewing the progress we have made and deciding on what issues to focus on next.

My goal in our time together will be to help you to put in place the conditions and tools that you need to heal yourself. Once you feel you are ready to move on without me, we can draw therapy to a close in a way that is safe, empowering and fulfilling for both us as we move onto the next stage in our journeys.