Richard Bennett

I’m Richard, an integrative therapist working privately in South London (Croydon area) and online. I aim to offer a safe and non-judgmental space in which you feel able to explore whatever brings you to therapy and to support you towards greater understanding, clarity, confidence and vitality in your life.

There can be a number of reasons for seeking therapy. For some of us, we may be experiencing a sense of crisis and ready to reach out for help. Perhaps the strategies that we’ve used to cope (distraction, avoidance, isolation, self-reliance, addictions etc) no longer work and we need to come into a more honest and direct relationship with our pain. For others of us, we may just feel a bit stuck in our lives- in our work, our relationships- and have a nagging sense that we could be living more purposefully, more fully and more in alignment with our true potential. Or maybe, we’ve already done some “inner work” and are looking to continue our journey of growth and personal transformation towards the person we sense beginning to emerge but are unsure of the next steps.

Whatever your specific reason, I recognise that it takes enormous courage to be willing to do this work and that it can feeling frightening and vulnerable to be where you are. I salute and honour your courage in considering taking this step. I have been fortunate in my own life to have found talented therapists who have helped me to navigate and overcome some very challenging experiences. Alongside therapy, I’ve explored (and continue to explore) other healing and self-development paths including 12 step groups, yoga, Buddhist meditation, men’s groups, training with Thomas Huebl to name a few and I incorporate many of these influences into my counselling practice.

Please see below for further information about my approach to get a sense of whether I might be a good fit for you.  

My practice is informed by my understanding of the healing process as a movement towards greater wholeness and vitality- what Carl Jung calls the process of individuation.

Our pain can manifest in a variety of ways- depression, anxiety, chronic pain, insomnia, low self-esteem, addictions, relationship difficulties, isolation and many more. Whatever form our pain takes, the symptoms are calling for our attention. “Please pay attention to us”, they say. “Stop ignoring us. If you listen to us, we can show you what you need”. In many cases, our pain may have its origins in early life experiences which we were not able to process at the time usually because of a lack of attuned support. Unaddressed and unresolved personal distress leaks out into the world impacting our own life and the lives of those around us.

It is my intention to help you turn towards what is difficult in your experience, to turn towards your pain, providing a warm, safe container in which you feel held, supported and welcome. When we feel relationally safe and held, then we can tolerate and bear even the most overwhelming and distressing thoughts and feelings. We can allow ourselves to explore what is difficult including things we may have blocked out of our awareness or minimised. As we do so, our tolerance to experience discomfort grows, our resilience increases, and we experience a sense of release and expansion as the psychic knots begin to loosen. The energy that has been bound up in these blockages becomes available to us and we feel a renewed sense of vitality and aliveness. We may find that negative patterns of thinking or behaviour which no longer serve us loosen their grip on us. We feel more ourselves and experience a growing confidence and trust in ourselves.

I believe we all have an inner wisdom that knows what we need and which, given the right conditions and support, we can tap into and reawaken. It is my intention to support you in moving towards this wiser, happier, more confident self.  

I offer a free 20 minute initial call to get a sense of what brings you to therapy and so that we can each assess whether we might be the right fit for one another. If we decide to go ahead, we'll usually agree 6 sessions and then review our work to determine how best to continue.