Alison Mattu

All day on Mondays and Fridays, some week night evenings.

I understand therapy is not for everyone. But in my experience, those who choose to invest in themselves by exploring what it means for them, tend to feel pleased they did.

Training in a variety of fields along with vast life experiences, allows me to help with a range of issues. I’m Scottish, and have lived in America, raised a family mostly alone and have deep connections to eastern culture. This, along with being a humanitarian, allows me to connect easily with people from diverse as well as everyday backgrounds. 

My priority is making you feel safe. We all need to feel emotionally safe in our daily lives with loved ones and friends. Its important you feel that with a therapist too. Confidentiality is guaranteed.

I have ten years’ experience of counselling adult women, men of all ages, and young people from all backgrounds. By working in private practice, employer’s programmes, GP’s, prison and schools, I’ve been in the privileged position to serve people in their darkest and brightest moments, with everything in-between. As a young person told me, ‘I learned you don’t have to be crazy to have counselling and that it’s helped me open up more instead of holding things in.’

I bring core values of honesty, compassion, gratitude, acceptance and meaning to help shine a light on the different roles we play and to connect with any pain, shame, negative thoughts and beliefs.

I support everyday people to improve their mental health with low self-esteem, work stress, challenging relationships, family disputes, parenting teenagers, abuse, single parents, changing life stages, health concerns, infidelity, anxiety, suicidal ideation, addictions, sexual issues, religious beliefs, loss, grief and more. I consider myself to be an everyday therapist.

I apply evidence-based approaches throughout therapy which include Person-Centred Experiential Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness.

I work in an integrated and collaborative way to suit the needs of each person as these differ greatly. Coming from a Person-Centred experiential approach and incorporating CBT as required, which is a way of looking at how our thought patterns and beliefs can create limitations and barriers for us.

Breaking down those barriers, and creating new ways of thinking and feeling can involve goal setting, emotion-focused work and a new way of being in our experiencing in all areas of our lives. Relaxation and Mindfulness are ways of reducing stress and anxiety in our lives, inducing calm which many find extremely helpful.

You can arrange a fifteen minute free consultation call to find out if I am the right therapist for you at this time.

You can email with a short overview of your concerns to make an appointment or to ask any questions. I offer concessions.

Every first session establishes confidentiality, boundaries and allows you to express what you need to whilst experiencing how we connect and discuss any expectations and goals for therapy.