Joanna Dawson

I am not currently available for new clients. 

I am a person-centred counsellor. This means I am here to accompany you on your journey with empathy and without judgment. 

I work on the principle that you are an expert on yourself and therefore you are the expert in how to resolve your difficulties.

Ideally, the counselling relationship should provide a space where you can feel supported in exploring your thoughts and feelings and come to trust your own expertise in you. 

With these principles in mind, I do not try to direct or educate clients. Instead I am here to listen to you with empathy and without judgments, accompanying you on your journey rather then telling you where to go!

You are entirely free to bring whatever you need to sessions and express yourself however you feel is most effective.

I am happy to work in person or on zoom. We can discuss which is likely to best meet your need in our initial appointment.

I am here to work with you as an individual and focus on your unique needs. I recognise that I cannot list every aspect of identity or experience that you may be struggling with and even if I could, your experience of any particular issue is as unique as you are.

I offer one to one counselling (i.e. it will just be me and you with no one else in the session).

I recognise that our society comprises complex webs of privilege and discrimination which impact on individuals' experiences, sometimes in obvious ways and sometimes in very subtle ways. Whatever your identity and experience, I seek to treat all clients with respect and to be fully accountable and to educate myself should I not live up to my ideals of equality and inclusion.

I offer a free initial 50 minute Zoom session so that we can meet and you can ask me any questions and my counselling contract.

It is important you that you work with a counsellor with whom you feel comfortable and who you trust and this is why I do not charge for the initial session.

The initial session is an opportunity for us to meet, for you to ask me questions and to decide if you would like to work with me.

I will not ask you to fill in any assessments or questionnaires. However, if there is something that you feel I need to know before we agree to work together, please tell me in the initial session.