Maria Laskou

I am currently offering both in-person counselling sessions on Thursdays and Fridays at a central Farnham location, and online counselling sessions throughout the week (Tue-Fri) via secure online video conferencing platforms, such as: Zoom or FaceTime. 

Please feel free to email, text, or call me to arrange a reduced-fee (£45) initial 50-minute consultation, where I can answer any questions you may have and explain how we could approach our work, depending on the issues you may want to address in therapy. We can then decide whether working together would be beneficial for you. 

I currently have some availability for day time and evening appointments during the week (Tue-Fri). I do not offer counselling sessions on Mondays or during the weekend.

Hello, I am Maria, a BACP Accredited Psychotherapist based in central Farnham. I work both in-person and online with individual adults and young adults 18+ Email, text or call me to arrange a reduced-fee introductory 50-minute consultation, during which you can get a sense of how you feel working with me.

Areas of interest & Experience: I have a special interest in working with neurodivergent individuals (especially with people who have Autism and/or ADHD) and in helping them embrace their unique qualities and strengths. I also have a strong interest in working with people who struggle with low self-esteem/low self-confidence and in enabling them to acknowledge and celebrate their distinct qualities, as well as to develop a more positive view of themselves. 

Additionally, I am very passionate about working with people who experience a broad range of mental health difficulties (such as: Anxiety and Depression) as well as those who have experienced many types of Trauma in their lives, and in helping them process their feelings, and create a meaningful life despite their struggles.

I have extensive experience working with adult and young adult clients 18+, presenting with a wide range of issues, including amongst others: Anxiety, social anxiety, stress, depression, low mood, lack of meaning, low self-esteem, low self-confidence, attachment issues, identity issues, family issues, life transitions, grief and loss, death anxiety, physical and emotional abuse, emotional neglect, loneliness, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, Trauma, Complex PTSD, neurodiversity (ADHD, ASD), and existential concerns.  As part of my work, I have also successfully supported clients who have been diagnosed with Bipolar disorder and personality disorders. 

My commitment to you: I am committed to offering a safe and accepting therapeutic relationship, where you can explore all your thoughts, feelings and experiences, and where you can bring anything that is troubling you, without the fear of judgement.

I am professionally trained in Humanistic/Existential counselling and I hold the belief that everyone has the inner resources to find the right way forward for them within the safety and security of a trusting and accepting therapeutic relationship.  My practice is mainly based on the person-centred approach which is deeply relational and non-directive; however, I incorporate a pluralistic framework in my work, which means that I can draw from several therapeutic modalities, including: "person-centred", "existential", "transactional analysis", "psychodynamic", and "solution focused therapy" to better serve your unique needs. We can decide to work together, in a mutually agreed way, and at a pace that is suitable for you -depending on the issues you may want to explore-, so we can find the most helpful way forward for you.

My focus in our work together: My main focus is on the therapeutic relationship with you, and on enabling you to feel safe and secure in exploring anything that is troubling you. For this reason, I will not be giving you advice or leading you to a direction that does not feel right for you. I will instead aim to empower you  and to help you find the right way forward for you. I will provide a safe and trusting environment, in which you can feel truly listened to, valued and accepted as you are, so that you can gradually develop a sense of self-acceptance, self-compassion, self-trust, as well as grow your self- belief and resilience.

I will be asking some open, exploratory questions in order to help you develop a better understanding of yourself and of your experiences, as well as to help you explore things from a different perspective. I will support you and encourage you to come to your own conclusions, to develop greater self-awareness, and to make the choices or changes that you may wish to make.

I believe that it is very important to feel comfortable with your counsellor and that they are the right 'fit' for you. For this reason I offer a 50-minute initial consultation at the reduced fee of £45, as an opportunity for you to express what you are currently struggling with or want to explore, ask any questions you may have about me and the way I work, and get a sense of whether working together would be beneficial for you. 

In this initial session, I will ask you about what brought you to therapy, about your hopes and expectations of counselling at this time in your life, and about previous helpful or not-so-helpful counselling experiences. I will also explain the way we could work together, with the hope that by the end of our initial meeting you can have an idea of whether working with me would be helpful for you.