Michelle Martin

I work Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays 

I am a person-centred counsellor working in Lancaster offering face-to face sessions or secure online or telephone counselling. It's important to me to offer you a genuine, down to earth and relaxed space where you will feel valued and respected. I believe a strong connection built on trust is key to a successful therapeutic relationship. My sessions are non-directive which means you will be in control of what you bring to sessions and together we will explore your thoughts and feelings at a pace that feels right for you. I aim to help you discover and build on your own inner strength and resilience, allowing you to take greater control of your life and feel more content, confident and able to respond to life's challenges.

I have over 25 years experience in teaching, lecturing, mentoring and counselling. I deeply value and respect the diversity and ways of being that make us human. I work with both young people and adults and have a particular interest in issues around identity and sense of self.

I have significant experience in working with grief, loss and illness and worked for many years at a local hospice. This is an area of counselling greatly close to my heart and I believe developing self-compassion and making meaning from loss can significantly help the grieving process.

I have also spent many years working with those who identify as autistic, neurodivergent or multiple and within the LGBTQIA+ community. I am trained at postgraduate level 7 as a person-centred therapist and I have also trained in solution focused brief therapy and person-centred expressive arts therapy (level one). I am a fully registered member with the BACP.

I also offer clinical supervision to individuals and groups.

To get started please send me a message through the link above and I will get back to you to arrange an initial phone/zoom call or meeting. There is no obligation to proceed and it is important we spend time getting to know each other to see if we are a good fit. We will talk about what you would like to get out of counselling and what might work for you. You may be new to counselling or have experience of therapy from the past which we would discuss together. Should we decide to work together we will book in our first session. I offer open-ended counselling which means you can stop at any time. Sessions are generally weekly or bi-weekly.

We will regularly review what is working and adapt sessions according to your needs. Some people need just a few sessions while others may have long term counselling over several years. We will work together to find what will be right for you.

I offer supervision to both individuals and groups and work both online and face-to-face. I work on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays.

My supervision approach focuses on developing a collaborative relationship that cultivates respect, inclusivity, and playful exploration whilst upholding the highest ethical standards. I offer a person-centred space to check in with your wellbeing as a counsellor as well as to explore your work with clients. 

We will work together to develop a deeply trusting and reflective space that is built around your own goals, needs, learning styles and personality, and where you can feel comfortable to share your work and stretch and challenge yourself as we explore your practice.

I work privately as a counsellor and supervisor and at a university as a senior lecturer in Counselling and Psychotherapy. I specialise in working with grief and bereavement, neurodiversity and identity. I have particular experience with LGBTQIA+ and neuroqueer issues and work within the queer community. More generally, I have experience working with a wide range of both common and complex mental health issues - please get in touch to enquire further. 

I offer an initial free 30 minute meeting for us to get to know each other and consider if we'll be a good fit.